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UK-based WElink Energy Portugal 2, the owner and operator of Portugal’s largest solar PV project, has entered administration, owing debts of €66.6 million (US$77.7 million).
The company operates the 220MW Solara4 project in Vaqueiros, southern Portugal, on which it began construction in 2017 and commenced commercial operations in 2021. However, UK government documents note that the project has endured “a combination of operational and market challenges” that have impacted the performance and the profitability of the project.
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Power prices have fluctuated considerably in Spain and Portugal this year, with figures from grid operator Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN) showing that power price fell from US$82.8/MWh in January to a low of US$12.8/MWh in February, before climbing back up to US$81.7/MWh in June; these trends are shown in the graph below, compared to monthly generation from the Iberian grid’s three leading renewable energy technologies.
This has also contributed to a wave of low power purchase agreement (PPA) prices and high curtailment hours, particularly in markets that are more reliant on renewable energy, such as Iberia; REN figures show that renewable energy has accounted for at least 55% of monthly generation in each of the first six months of the year.
More specifically, Solara4 has also endured “multiple fires” in the last year, which, according to UK government documents, have required “increases in remediation and maintenance costs”. The documents also suggest that some of the damage has affected inverters, leading to “extended periods of downtime”, meaning that the project has become more expensive through part repair and replacement, and had its ability to generate electricity and money impeded.
The start of administration proceedings is perhaps a surprise, considering WElink previously announced plans to expand the project. Last April, the company said that it would add 50MW of new solar PV capacity, 264MW of new wind capacity and a 100MW battery energy storage system (BESS) to turn the project into a “comprehensive hybrid energy solution”. The UK government documents note that WElink expected to be in a position to better pay outstanding interest in June 2026 as a result of this transition to a hybrid asset.
WElink also contracted CTIEC, a subsidiary of the China National Building Material Group Corporation, to complete engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) work at the project.
This contract was terminated in May 2023 due to “alleged abandonment of part of the project by CTIEC”, due to being owed a liability of around €143 million (US$166.8 million) by the Solara4 project, according to UK government documents.
However, CTIEC’s EPC contract includes a “wash-off provision,” which can cause this debt to be “automatically and unconditionally” assumed by WElink. The parties involved dispute this debt, and CTIEC filed for arbitration with the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) in May to resolve this dispute.
While Solara4 was touted as Europe’s largest “subsidy-free” solar project upon the start of construction, this does not mean that its financing was completed without the involvement of external investors.
Specifically, while the project was financed with US$204.2 million in private capital, a further US$116.7 million of senior secured lending was provided by asset manager Investec and Austrian infrastructure investor Kommunalkredit. The UK government report notes that the lenders’ exposure has been reduced from this total to around US$77.7 million, which is listed as having an “uncertain” expected return.
As part of the administration process, Kirsty McMahon and Danny Dartnaill have been appointed joint administrators of WElink Energy Portugal 2, and have already terminated an existing asset management agreement between Solara4 and a WElink subsidiary that was appointed in 2023 to complete outstanding work on the site following the departure of CTIEC.
The joint administrators’ terms are currently set to end on 10 June 2027, but will plan to extend this administration. The UK government document includes the creditors’ voluntary liquidation or the dissolution of WElink Energy Portugal 2 as potential resolutions to this case.

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Chinese module manufacturer JinkoSolar shipped 15.9GW of modules in the second quarter of this year, a 34.4% year-on-year decline, and announced that Wei ‘Dimi’ Du has replaced founder Xiande Li as CEO.
The company’s latest module shipments follow a poor performance in sales in the first quarter of the year, in which JinkoSolar sold 13.7GW of modules, the lowest quarterly sales figure since the first quarter of 2023.
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These low sales figures followed a decline in module prices across the industry, and contributed to revenue of just RMB12.36 billion (US$1.84 billion) in the second quarter of this year, a 0.9% decline from the US$1.82 billion reported in the first quarter of the year.
The company’s decline in module sales is shown in the graph below; the first half of this year marks the lowest half-year total module sales reported since the second half of 2022.
JinkoSolar also announced today that founder and former CEO Xiande Li had resigned from the company, effective immediately, and that Du would take over the position. Li will continue to serve as company chairman and chair of the compensation committee, and JinkoSolar pointed out that Li’s resignation “was not due to any disagreement with the company”, and that it does not expect this change to have “any material impact” on its operations.
“This transition is part of a carefully planned succession process,” said Li. “As we enter the next phase of development, this arrangement allows me to focus on our long-term strategy, board governance and major strategic decisions, while our new CEO will lead management in overseeing day‑to‑day operations, strategic execution and capital allocation at the group level.”
Li’s resignation follows that of Chen Kangping, who stepped down as vice chairman, director and member of the Strategy and Sustainability Committee last month. His term was set to expire on 25 December 2026, and his early resignation was attributed to personal reasons.
Du said that the company’s 29.6GW of sales in the first six months of the year are “at the forefront of industry”, and this is reflected in poor sales figures across the Chinese solar sector as a whole, not just for JinkoSolar in particular.
For instance, in the first half of the year, leading Chinese PV companies saw a combined deficit of over US$1.49 billion, after years of high production and collapsing module prices, which have led to parallel crises of severe module overproduction and low revenues for manufacturers. This has affected companies throughout the supply chain, such as Daqo New Energy, which posted a dramatic 88.3% quarter-on-quarter decline in polysilicon sales in the first quarter of this year.
PV Tech Premium heard from JA Solar leadership during its financial results that the second half of this year will be something of an inflection point for the global solar industry, due to these economic challenges. However, JA Solar management said at the time that the rapid expansion of the battery energy storage system (BESS) sector could help bolster demand for solar modules, to the benefit of the industry.
“Supply and demand across the PV industry remain dynamic and with policy shifts in both domestic and overseas markets, prices along the supply chain and industry profitability continued to be under pressure,” said Du. Uncertainty on the global scale is particularly significant for JinkoSolar, which shipped 70% of its modules to overseas markets in the second quarter of the year, exposing it to policy disruptions overseas.
“The cost of ramping up production of our high-efficiency products remained elevated during the quarter and impacted our gross margin and bottom line when combined with the delivery of certain low-value orders,” added Du.
However, the quarter has not been without success for the company, which launched its Tiger Neo 5.0 range of tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) modules in June. JinkoSolar also posted a year-on-year increase in gross profit of 2.5% and a gross profit margin of 4.2% in the second quarter of the year, up from 2.9% in the second quarter of 2025.
Looking ahead, JinkoSolar has revised down its guidance for the remainder of the year. The company now expects to ship between 60GW and 70GW of modules in 2026, down from a forecast of 75-85GW made in the first quarter of this year. This would be notably lower than the 86GW of modules that the company sold last year.

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Next2Sun Raises Up to Five Million Euros for Vertical Photovoltaics  energynews.pro
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Iberville Parish Council members shot down a proposal from Entergy that would have paved the way for a solar farm south of Plaquemine.
The 7-4 vote with one absentee put the brakes on Cypress Harvest Solar, which was proposed on a 1,600-acre tract just southwest of Plaquemine along La. 75.
The project would have occupied former sugarcane fields five miles from Plaquemine city limits, nestled between Mille Plantation and Derrick Road, adjacent to Belleview Road.
Board members Terry Bradford, Freddie Frazier, Charles Dardenne and Trent Martinez approved the measure.
Board members Shalanda Allen, Chasity Easley, Thomas Dominique Sr., Raheem Pierce, Hunter Markins, Matt Jewell and Bart Morgan voted against it.
Council member Nadia Jenkins was absent.
The meeting drew an overflow crowd, including approximately 20 spectators who watched from a screen in the corridor outside the chamber.
The vote followed a lengthy discussion and comments from supporters and opponents of the proposed project.
Resident Garry Harrell, one of the residents opposed to the project, asked council members to withhold all final construction, drainage and operating permits on the project until the development until ordinances are put in place to guarantee safe conditions for the project.
“While landowners possess property rights, those rights do not override the various fundamental duty to protect human health, local groundwater, safety, and environmental issues,” he said. “I request that the Iberville Parish Council withhold all final construction, drainage, and operating permits for this project until the development of bills that outline safety conditions.”
Entergy said the solar project would address power demand increase on the Westbank. It would also speed up large-scale power generation in the region.
Entergy had been reaching out nearly five years to generational landowners about land acquisition, Entergy Regional Manager Seth Schilling told the Council.
“From Day One, our priority has been to listen,” he said. “We met with the administration, council members, industry leaders, and the community understand what Iberville Parish expects from a project of this scale.”
The Parish Council approved a solar ordinance in 2023, and its regulations drew no opposition.
It promoted Entergy to move forward, Schilling said.
“We took that action very seriously, and I spent millions of dollars today developing our project,” he said. “We built our project around the standards, requirements, and expectations established by this parish and this body, and ensured compliance and exceeding of many of those ordinance requirements.”
Entergy had reached out to the Wilbert and Gay families, who are among the largest landowners in Iberville Parish.
Both families have generational ties to their respective land holdings.
Schilling said project had been brought before parish engineers before it moved forward to the Council for review.
“We are not asking for special treatment or changes to the rules,” he said. “We are asking simply for the opportunity to move forward under the rules you established through a very public, thorough process, which we respect and appreciate.
“We recognize that projects like this can generate strong opinion. Social media misinformation can sometimes amplify concerns, but throughout this process, our commitment has remained the same — to listen, to engage in good faith, to follow the process, and to be a responsible partner, to integral parish and its residents.”
He said the purpose of the project extends beyond the mere generation of electricity.
“It’s about creating lasting value for the parish, and the state as a whole,” Schilling said.” Demand for electricity is an all-time high, and it’s a regulated utility. We have an obligation to provide reliable, affordable power.”
Klein Kirby, Chairman of A. Wilbert Sons LLC, said his company had negotiated a lease agreement in July 2021 — two years before the Parish Council established the solar ordinance in a public.
“The public records show there was no opposition tot that ordinance from the public at the time,” he told the Council. “When the Council passed that ordinance, they gave landowners and project a reasonable expectation of stability and predictability.”
He fears the move the parish’s vote will create a bad precedent.
“We should be careful not to set a precedent that requires landowners to submit every lawful use of private property to a public vote,” Kirby said. “Perhaps our greatest concern tonight is the preservation of landowner rights.”
Meanwhile, Parish President Chris Daigle is concerned about the message the Council’s rejection could send to other industries considering Iberville as a place to conduct business.
“It’s an important topic — landowner’s rights,” Daigle said. “But tonight the Council members decided to not follow an ordinance they put in place.”
Iberville Parish Government will have 30 days to provide Entergy a reason the Council denied the request.
“At that time, we will see what happens,” Daigle said. “The project met all the guidelines, but the Council members decided not to approve it … we’ll see what the next steps are.”
Council member Casity Easley, who opposed the bill, said she could not approve the proposal as it was presented.
She said had not been presented any updated information about the project
Other issues also prompted her to oppose the request.
“With a school (Plaquemine High) nearby, the lack of jobs protected from this project, along with the loss of agriculture and pushback from District 2 and other constituents over their concerns, I cannot support this project.”
Regardless of why the Council denied the measure, Daigle believes their actions send a bad message for any business looking to invest in Iberville Parish.
“It definitely sets a bad precedence for any business looking to invest in Iberville Parish,” he said. “They set guidelines, but now they don’t want to follow them.
“A lot of people think Iberville is rich in industry, but you’ve got to have the supporting infrastructure to support the additional investments. It’s the same with power plants … we have multiple power plants looking to invest in Iberville because of the needs, so we must be mindful of our decision because that may impact other decisions coming down the road.”

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The first phase of the Koshkonong Solar Farm near Cambridge, above, is nearing completion. Now, Chicago-based Invenergy is proposing a second project about half the size of the first, which is dividing rural residents.
TOWN OF CHRISTIANA — Residents of this small farming community in eastern Dane County spent years fighting what was then Wisconsin’s largest solar farm.
Invenergy developer Sam Heagney fields questions from residents opposed to an expanded solar project in the town of Christiana in June.
Tara Vasby’s home on Clear View Road in Cambridge is surrounded on three sides by solar panels. Vasby said she has stopped driving on certain roads near her house because the sight of hills covered in solar panels upsets her too much. A former staff member to Democrats in the state Legislature, Vasby said she has concluded that “neither party is interested in saving rural Wisconsin” by giving local governments the tools to stop or shape them.
Dane County Sup. Kerry Marren drives through the evolving Koshkonong Solar Farm project near Cambridge. The large-scale projects have changed the character of the small rural community, she said, driving up the price of farmland.
Tara Vasby, whose property abuts the Koshkonong Solar Farm project in Cambridge, looks out an array of recently installed panels near her property.
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The utility said the energy from the solar farm will move it closer to its goal of producing energy that doesn’t put additional carbon into th…
The 325-megawatt Walworth County project will be the second solar-plus-storage plant owned by WEC Energy Group and MGE, which are seeking to b…
Koshkonong is the twelfth and largest solar project approved by the commission but the first of its size in Dane County. It includes the large…
Wisconsin law requires a permit to build a large power plant. The standards are different depending on who’s building it.
The landscape is a rural idyll, a farmer’s dream. That’s also what appealed to the founders of Kettle Forge Golf Club.
While Dane County loses farmland to sprawl, one small town has spent almost 50 years paying farmers not to sell.
The average agricultural sale value per acre in Wisconsin has risen 70% since 2020. Counties in Southern Wisconsin led the way.
Invenergy developer Sam Heagney fields questions from residents opposed to an expanded solar project in the town of Christiana in June.
Dane County Sup. Kerry Marren drives through the evolving Koshkonong Solar Farm project near Cambridge. The large-scale projects have changed the character of the small rural community, she said, driving up the price of farmland.
Tara Vasby, whose property abuts the Koshkonong Solar Farm project in Cambridge, looks out an array of recently installed panels near her property.
Tara Vasby’s home on Clear View Road in Cambridge is surrounded on three sides by solar panels. Vasby said she has stopped driving on certain roads near her house because the sight of hills covered in solar panels upsets her too much. A former staff member to Democrats in the state Legislature, Vasby said she has concluded that “neither party is interested in saving rural Wisconsin” by giving local governments the tools to stop or shape them.
The first phase of the Koshkonong Solar Farm near Cambridge, above, is nearing completion. Now, Chicago-based Invenergy is proposing a second project about half the size of the first, which is dividing rural residents.
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By Joe Griffin
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Rooftops and industrial estates on farms are not being used enough for solar, according to managing director of Local Power Ltd. and member of the Micro Renewable Energy Federation (MREF), Pat Smith.
MREF represents companies and stakeholders engaged in developing, installing, supplying and manufacturing micro PV solar and battery storage in Ireland.
Smith told Agriland: “I’d be a strong advocate that the government is not doing enough to support farmers to use rooftop solar, primarily, for rolling out solar PV.
“Rooftops don’t do anything else.”
He added that solar has huge benefits for farmers in reducing energy bills and improving their carbon emissions, and that as an energy source it “economically makes sense for farming”.
Agricultural land is sometimes used for solar farms, which has been the subject of debate.
On that subject, Smith said: “You can’t fault farmers or landowners who are encouraged to dedicate land to solar farms if they’re offered an attractive index link for doing that.
“I think a person who owns land is entitled to do with it what they wish.”
However, he added that using rooftops for solar should be encouraged.
Smith said: “Any policy that encourages good productive agri-land to be diverted towards solar energy has to be challenged, especially when there is alternative available rooftop solar on every farm and in every industrial estate across this country to put that solar.
“You can fault policy if too much land is going into solar in any particular area.”
Smith gave the example of land in north Co. Dublin and south Co. Meath.
He said that in those locations there are “thousands of acres of land where planning is sought and given for solar PV in a small area”.  
Smith added: “It can have a huge impact on farming ecosystem in that area.
“And it’s the best of land.”
He added that the same volume of space “if not more” is available on rooftops that could be used for solar PV, and questioned why more is not being done to utilise rooftops rather than “good agricultural land”.
On solar power, Smith said: “It’s helping society generate more renewable energy and reducing carbon emissions, and it’s a good counter to wind energy.”
He added that solar compliments wind, as it “tends to generate in good weather when sun is shining, as wind does in blustery wintery conditions”.
“I think that the government policy has been encouraging farmers to invest in solar PV through TAMS (Targeted Agriculture Modernisation Schemes) grant scheme, which has been curtailed recently, apparently for budgetary reasons.
“And to encourage more farmers to adapt solar PV and more businesses, they need to increase grants available, and introduce grants for battery storage,” Smith said.
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US independent power producers (IPPs) Swift Current Energy and Avantus have secured financing for their pipelines and projects, respectively.
Both items below come from our colleagues at PV Tech. Solar Media’s solar PV technology site has covered over US$2 billion in solar and solar-adjacent finance deals, including energy storage, in August 2026 alone.
US independent power producer (IPP) Swift Current Energy has secured a US$750 million credit facility to support what it called “reliable, clean energy projects” in the US.
The corporate credit facility came from a group of banks led by Credit Agricole CIB, ING Capital and Truist Securities. It contains an accordion option to increase its value by a further US$250 million, reaching US$1 billion of accessible credit.
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Swift Current Energy said that the funding, which is a dual-tranche facility with a three-year term, will enable it to develop, operate and commercialise clean energy projects in the US to meet “rapidly growing electricity demand”. The company did not specify the technology of the projects that the funds will support, though it has previously secured funds from Credit Agricole for its 122MW Three Rivers solar project in Maine.
“This transaction reflects the continued maturation of the renewable energy sector, where scaled platforms increasingly require flexible corporate capital alongside project-level financing,” said Sven Wellock, head of renewables and power, energy, Americas at ING Capital.
Michael Arndt, chief executive officer of Swift Current, said: “The scale of this facility reflects both the strength of the portfolio Swift Current has built and the opportunity ahead of us. Electricity demand is growing rapidly across the United States and meeting that demand will require significant investment in new energy infrastructure.”
Read the full version of this story on PV Tech, where it first appeared on 21 August 2026.
US independent power producer (IPP) Avantus has closed US$300 million in tax equity for a 150MW/452MWh solar-plus-storage project in California.
The funds, delivered by Truist Bank, will support the Aratina 2 solar-plus-storage project in Kern County, California, which is currently under construction and expected to be operational by the end of 2026.
Michael Joh, senior vice president, project finance at Avantus, said the tax equity was “the final piece of financing Aratina 2 needs to complete construction and enter our operating portfolio later this year.”
The project has a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA) in place with power utility Southern California Edison.
Kern County in Southern California is home to a lot of large, utility-scale solar and energy storage projects. As well as Avantus’ presence, the county—which spans the southern end of California’s Central Valley—hosts developments from Idemitsu Renewables, Origis Energy and the Younan Company.
The US$300 million adds to the roughly US$525 million that Avantus secured in construction financing for the Aratina 2 project, led by BBVA. Once operational, the second phase of Aratina will bring the total capacity of the site to 350MW of solar PV and 952MWh of energy storage, building on the Aratins 1 project that entered commercial operations last month.
The company, which is majority-owned by institutional investor KKR, said it is on track to bring 788MW of solar and energy storage online by the end of this year, out of its total development pipeline of 24GW. Earlier this month, Avantus closed a US$1 billion credit facility to support the development of that pipeline.
As well as California, Avantus has advanced solar, energy storage and co-located projects across most of the major US state markets for renewables. It inked a PPA for a 100MW/400MWh solar-plus-storage project in Arizona in late 2024, and completed construction at a 159MW solar PV project in Texas earlier this year.
This story was first published by PV Tech, 25 August 2026.

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The California state Assembly has voted to pass Senate Bill 868, a bill that would allow the state’s residents to use portable solar generation devices with up to 1,200 watts of output that plug into an electrical receptacle in a home or apartment.
The bill requires such devices to be used with the intent to offset the customer’s onsite electricity consumption and meet the standards of the most recent version of the National Electrical Code and the California Electrical Code. It also requires the systems to be certified by Underwriters Laboratories or an equivalent nationally recognized testing laboratory.
SB 868 would exempt users of these devices from requirements to file interconnection agreements with their local utility or to obtain the utility’s permission to use such devices, but it does allow a utility to require that customers notify it of their intent to use a plug-in solar device.
Notably, the text of SB 868 has been amended several times since the bill was introduced, adding language that removes as of January 1, 2030 the interconnection exemption and the rights of users to install the devices without utility permission.
The bill now heads to the Senate for concurrence on amendments made by the Assembly. If signed by the governor, the law would take effect on January 1, 2027.
Though the bill enjoyed broad support in both houses of the state legislature, it would not likely survive a veto by outgoing governor Gavin Newsom. Legislators in California have not attempted to override a governor’s veto since 1979. 
Anticipation in the plug-in solar market
SB 868, which was introduced in January by Senator Scott Wiener, has become one of the most-watched pieces of plug-in solar legislation in the country. If passed, it would make California the eleventh state in the nation to enact such a law, opening a market for plug-in solar devices in the nation’s most populous state — and one where the cost of electricity is among the highest.
Both homeowners and renters could benefit from the ability to use plug-in solar devices to offset some of their consumption, potentially saving hundreds of dollars per year from a 1,200-watt setup as described in the bill.
SB 868 was backed by several prominent climate and energy groups, including the Environmental Working Group (EWG), The Sierra Club, Vote Solar, and nonprofit plug-in solar advocacy group Bright Saver. 
In January 2026, Senator Wiener was joined by EWG California vice president Bernadette Del Chiaro and Bright Saver co-founder Cora Stryker in a webinar to celebrate the bill’s introduction and discuss the next steps.
“The nation is watching what happens in California,” said Stryker at the time. “If we get this across the finish line, the market will change permanently. We’ll have economies of scale. We’ll have manufacturers come into the American market, and it will never be the same.”
Following the bill’s passage out of the Assembly on August 25, EWG released a statement praising the state legislature’s efforts. “This is the most exciting clean energy idea around,”  Del Chiaro said in the release. “With this bill, California is poised to fling its doors wide open to a real, tangible affordability solution for everyday consumers. Solar energy is a no-brainer for California and we applaud Sen. Wiener and his legislative colleagues for their hard work to put this critical clean energy solution on the governor’s desk.”
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A two-day conference in Austin, Texas, bringing together leaders in US solar manufacturing, equipment specification, and factory execution.
Entries open in seven categories: Modules, Inverters, BoS, BESS, Manufacturing, Sustainability, Projects.
April 01 – August 31, 2026
Thursday, August 27, 2026
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Thursday, October 7, 2026
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pv magazine USA hosts its third multi-day virtual event on advancing U.S. solar and energy storage markets, covering financing, supply chains, and distributed energy’s role in grid resilience.

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Southampton FC fans who spy an opportunity to improve their household energy efficiency are being offered a buy one, get one free discount on solar panels via UK solar leasing company Utilita Home.
New customers looking to score discounted rooftop solar panels are invited to apply for a free online quote from Utilita Home using promotional offer code. Those that do so before Aug. 31 will be entered into a prize draw, with the chance to score hospitality tickets for Southampton v Bolton, plus a signed shirt.
Installing rooftop solar panels can save Southampton fans up to GBP 1,275 ($1,737) per year according to Utilita, netting them bill savings and cutting their carbon footprint.
The savings estimate is based on a large electricity usage home in the United Kingdom, using roughly 5,700 kWh per year, with Utilita claims could save GBP 916 on a 16-panel system with 5.32 kWh of battery storage, plus a further GBP 359 in savings in exports to the grid.
To qualify for the promotion, entrants must be new domestic solar customers aged 18, and must complete and submit a desktop survey. Eligibility for promotion is subject to terms and conditions.  
Southampton FC is not the only English club with ties to the solar industry. Premier League runners-up Manchester City signed a multi-year global partnership with JinkSolar in June 2024.
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Our special edition for Intersolar South America 2026 is here!
Discover the latest insights into the Brazilian solar market – in Portuguese.
Entries open in seven categories: Modules, Inverters, BoS, BESS, Manufacturing, Sustainability, Projects.
April 01 – August 31, 2026
A two-day conference in Austin, Texas, bringing together leaders in US solar manufacturing, equipment specification, and factory execution.
Saudi Arabia is accelerating its clean energy transition—join the SunRise Arabia Clean Energy Conference 2026 in Riyadh to explore how solar PV and energy storage are powering its digital economy.
Thursday, August 27, 2026
5:30 am – 6:30 am CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid
pv magazine USA hosts its third multi-day virtual event on advancing U.S. solar and energy storage markets, covering financing, supply chains, and distributed energy’s role in grid resilience.
Thursday, October 7, 2026
11:00 am – 12:30 pm CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid

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Gabriel Higgins2026-08-26T11:15:00+01:00
Hawke’s Bay Airport has opened an Expression of Interest process for a smaller 12-17MW solar farm, after an earlier 45MW proposal was not pursued.

Representative impression of the Hawke’s Bay Airport solar farm, subject to cultural, aeronautical and environmental consents and feasibility.
Credit: Hawke’s Bay Airport
Hawke’s Bay Airport has opened an Expression of Interest process for its proposed solar farm, inviting delivery and co-investment partners to come forward. The move marks an important milestone for the project, which is being positioned as a foundation for the region’s renewable energy needs. Airport chief executive Nick Flack says demand for renewable electricity in aviation is expected to grow substantially by 2050, potentially reaching 20 times current levels.
A 12 to 17MW solar farm is proposed for a 24-hectare site northwest of the runways. The airport says the site’s generation capability would be equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of around 3,000 Hawke’s Bay households.
The EOI process follows an earlier decision by Hawke’s Bay Airport and Manawa Energy, now owned by Contact Energy, not to proceed with a larger 45MW solar development. Flack says infrastructure projects of this scale often go through several iterations as feasibility, commercial viability and business priorities are tested.
“After exploring the options with Manawa, both parties agreed the best path forward was for the airport to continue developing plans for a smaller, fit-for-purpose solar farm that better aligns with our long-term requirements,” he says.
No final investment decision has been made. Flack says feasibility work has supported progressing the project to the EOI stage, which will help determine the airport’s preferred delivery, ownership and investment model. This work will run over the next 12 months alongside consenting, engineering and community engagement.
Flack also acknowledged input from local stakeholders, including Mana Ahuriri Trust and Unison, during the project’s development. He says the current phase is focused on understanding market appetite and capability across construction, operations and potential co-investment structures.
Parties interested in the EOI, along with members of the public seeking further information, can find details on the airport’s website.
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From Solar Waste to Resource Security: Regain Energies’ Role in Building India’s Solar PV Recycling Ecosystem  Ahmedabad Mirror
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RATCH Group Targets THB 15 Billion EBITDA and 15% Renewable Revenue in 2026  SolarQuarter
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A hybrid retrofit at the 4.1 MW Warnertown Solar Farm in the state of South Australia has been completed, with the solar and electrical construction company Solmech replacing six of the site’s Sungrow PV inverters with hybrid alternatives, each paired with a 200 kWh Powerkeeper battery unit, adding a total of 1.2 MWh of new storage capacity.
Located about 215 kilometers north of South Australia’s capital, Adelaide, the Warnertown Solar Farm was built in 2001 and initially comprised a 2.5 MW ground-mounted PV system. A 1.6 MW second stage was added in 2023.
With the asset owner looking to maximize the value of the existing infrastructure, Solmech teamed with Chinese PV inverter and energy storage technology manufacturer Sungrow to add battery energy storage at the site.
Previously operating with 30 Sungrow SG110CX PV inverters, the facility was upgraded with six of the PV inverters replaced with SH110CX hybrid inverters, each paired with a 200 kWh Sungrow Powerkeeper battery.
DC-coupling
Sungrow said integrating energy storage directly on the DC side avoided the need for transformer modifications, reduced project complexity, and significantly lowered investment costs, enabling faster deployment and stronger commercial returns.
“South Australia’s strict grid compliance rules often require lengthy approvals and transformer upgrades when adding AC-coupled batteries,” the company said. “Sungrow’s DC-coupled hybrid solution helps minimise these challenges and supports a smooth integration.”
Sungrow said the upgraded system has been designed to maximize the value of the solar farm, allowing it to operate more intelligently within South Australia’s dynamic wholesale electricity market.
“Battery storage can capture surplus solar generation and discharge energy when it is more valuable, helping the asset respond more effectively to changing generation conditions and electricity market signals,” the company said.
Solmech co-founder Newman Mundy said the upgrade had been seamless from installation through commissioning with the existing inverters simply swapped out for the new hybrid technology, while the design ensured the new equipment fitted within the existing shelter and required virtually no civil modifications
“The retrofit was really straightforward,” he said. “We simply replaced the existing inverters with hybrid units and added the PowerKeeper batteries. The compact design made installation fast and efficient.”
Sungrow technical support engineer Rock Liu said the Warnertown project demonstrates the company’s ability to tailor its storage solution to site-specific constraints including available grid capacity, transformer limits and site layout.
“Every site comes with different constraints, whether it’s available grid capacity, transformer limits or site layout. This upgrade shows we can tailor PowerKeeper to fit within those constraints and still deliver strong benefits for the owner,” he said.
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Energies Media
Solar farms can support more nocturnal wildlife than traditional agricultural fields in the American Midwest.
The United States is actively expanding its green capacity, with a special focus on solar power.
This is essential to meeting surging energy demand sustainably, but requires a balance with biodiversity conservation.
Native vegetation is being added to these facilities, prompting research on the effects on local bats.
Will these species benefit from the pollinator-friendly installations, or rather avoid them?
The United States is becoming more digitized by the day.
This major technological shift is vital to maintain the nation’s competitiveness in the fast-moving international market.
Economic growth is driven by streamlined services, which significantly increase business activity.
While it certainly raises convenience for all, this modern transformation also adds pressure to the U.S. power grid.
Projections from the IEA indicate that electricity demand will reach over 4,200 billion kilowatt-hours.
With cryptocurrency operations becoming the norm, and AI and data centers expanding, this consumption will continue to increase.
Existing power plants are buckling under the immense loads.
New plants can be constructed, but it will take up to ten years. By then, it will be too late to prevent widespread blackouts.
A continued reliance on fossil fuels contradicts the nation’s climate targets anyhow.
As a result, utility-scale renewable infrastructure becomes lifesaving.
Installations such as photovoltaics play a particularly vital role.
Large-scale solar capacity, paired with giant battery systems, is being quickly deployed to close the growing supply gap.
Developers are aiming to add more than 43 GW of new capacity in one year.
This will represent over half of the grid’s new power generation additions.
The benefit is that these facilities can be planned, constructed, and connected to the regional grid within a short period.
This rapid deployment is important, as industrial and technological demand continues to soar, requiring several gigawatts to keep pace.
However, expanding capacity at this rate does come with challenges.
Across the Midwest and Southwest, millions of acres are being transformed into high-yield photovoltaic plants.
The massive spatial footprint raises concerns about biodiversity loss.
Developers are implementing mitigation efforts, such as local vegetation growth.
But will this be enough to also save native wildlife, especially the nocturnal ones?
A team of researchers decided to explore this concern.
The research team from Argonne National Laboratory monitored 12 commercial facilities from 2023 to 2024.
They compared the data to reference agricultural fields across the Midwest.
To determine how many bats frequented the locations, ultrasonic recording equipment was deployed.
The microphones passively recorded bat echolocation calls during the night.
The first half of the monitoring season took place from May to mid-July.
During this time, the solar sites had a 50% higher bat activity rate than the nearby crop fields.
This results from early-season farm tillage, when fields are bare and insect food sources are scarce.
Likewise, the native vegetation at the panels attracted more insects.
There was no evidence of avoidance across the Midwest solar facilities.
Bat activity varied across different species.
Hoary bats had the highest activity for most of the season, followed by big brown bats.
Silver-haired bat activity remained equal across both landscapes.
The study’s findings indicate that it is possible to have green infrastructure coexist with local wildlife.
By integrating native vegetation, biodiversity is restored. Additionally, solar farms are transformed into refuges and foraging grounds.
Ultimately, pollinator-friendly designs pave the way forward to boosting American clean energy while protecting nature.
For more information about the study, please review the APA CITE: Szoldatits, K. E., Walston, L. J., Hartmann, H. M., Fox, L., Stanger, M. E., Steele, S. E., … & Macknick, J. (2025). Bat activity at ecovoltaic solar energy developments in the Midwestern United States. Global Ecology and Conservation, e03864.
Anke Maree is a writer with a clear and engaging editorial style. Her work focuses on making complex topics accessible, informative, and relevant for readers across different areas of interest.
Anke Maree is a writer with a clear and engaging editorial style. Her work focuses on making complex topics accessible, informative, and relevant for readers across different areas of interest.
Anke Maree is a writer with a clear and engaging editorial style. Her work focuses on making complex topics accessible, informative, and relevant for readers across different areas of interest.

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Lightstar Renewables Wins 27.3 MW in New Jersey’s Agricultural Solar Program  energynews.pro
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With the VAL-SPP-T1-1500DC-PV-2+V-UT-R lightning current arrester, Phoenix Contact has added a type 1 lightning current arrester for photovoltaic systems with 1,500 V DC to its Safe Protection Plus product family.
The industry is increasingly demanding higher system voltages and maximum system availability. The new lightning current arrester works reliably in this demanding environment. As the first pluggable T1 1,500 V DC arrester in the Phoenix Contact portfolio, the device impresses with its highly robust and compact design for the DIN rail. The protection modules make testing and maintenance work easier. When performing insulation measurements, the plugs are simply unplugged to avoid inaccurate readings. At the same time, the installation remains completely intact. The device meets the requirements of IEC 61643, including all test classes relevant for PV applications. The integrated remote indication contact enables reliable monitoring and integration into higher-level systems – an essential factor for operators who need to manage large PV parks efficiently.
The modular design provides clear structures as well as safe air clearances and creepage distances. Typical areas of application include large PV parks and commercial systems. High pulse resistance and optimised handling make the lightning current arrester a future-proof solution for the DC side of modern photovoltaic systems.
Under a global umbrella brand, Phoenix Contact offers innovative products, solutions and digitalisation expertise for the electrification, networking, and automation of all sectors of the economy and infrastructure.
Phoenix Contact employs around 21,000 people worldwide, with sales of €3.3 billion in 2025. Worldwide, production takes place in a broad-based manufacturing network in all regions of the world with varying degrees of vertical integratio. More than 50 sales subsidiaries around the world belong to the Phoenix Contact Group, ensuring proximity to both markets and customers.Together with customers and partners, Phoenix Contact develops solutions for the future using pioneering connection and automation technology
Phoenix Contact is a leader in electrical connection technology, electronic interface technology and industrial automation technology.
Our modern components and system solutions are found in a variety of industrial applications. With more than 80 years of innovation experience, Phoenix Contact has the solution for your application needs.
Established for over 25 years in the UK, Phoenix Contact Ltd has rapidly grown from providing only Sales and Marketing support of the Company’s Products, to today offering to its Customers, Engineering Services and Support.
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© 2025 THE COOL DOWN COMPANY. All Rights Reserved. Do not sell or share my personal information. Reach us at hello@thecooldown.com.
“Confirm who submits the paperwork, and get it in writing.”
Photo Credit: iStock
A solar installation day can feel like the finish line, but for many homeowners, it is actually the moment when a small overlooked detail turns into a much bigger headache. 
One Redditor’s practical checklist is drawing attention for focusing less on the panels themselves and more on the questions that can help prevent delays, confusion, and costly follow-up problems.
In a post to Reddit‘s r/SolarEnergy forum, an original poster wrote, “Most install-day advice focuses on the panels and roof work. The questions that seem just as important are much more practical: Who needs access, what happens if the crew finds a problem, and what should be completed before everyone leaves.”
The OP added, “Here is the checklist I would use before a residential solar installation.”
Want to go solar but not sure who to trust? EnergySage has your back with free and transparent quotes from fully vetted providers in your area.
To get started, just answer a few questions about your home — no phone number required. Within a day or two, EnergySage will email you the best options for your needs, and their expert advisers can help you compare quotes and pick a winner.
The post says the practical preparation starts with timing and access. Before work begins, homeowners should know the crew’s arrival window, identify who is in charge on-site, and clarify whether workers will need to access areas such as the attic, garage, breaker panel, side yard, gates, or rooms.
It also encourages homeowners to settle placement details before the job starts by reviewing where the inverter, battery, disconnects, and any exposed conduit will go, while also making the site easier to work in by moving vehicles, clearing pathways, and securing pets.
Commenters added their own hard-earned advice as well. One Redditor urged homeowners to “Verify the solar panel watt ordered is what was delivered.”
Solar can deliver significant utility savings over time, but only if the system is properly installed and activated without unnecessary delays. This checklist focuses on the handoff from a signed contract to a working system.
FROM OUR PARTNER
Want to go solar but not sure who to trust? EnergySage has your back with free and transparent quotes from fully vetted providers that can help you save as much as $10k on installation.
To get started, just answer a few questions about your home — no phone number required. Within a day or two, EnergySage will email you the best local options for your needs, and their expert advisers can help you compare quotes and pick a winner.
A homeowner may spend weeks comparing quotes and projected savings, but install day still brings logistical issues that can affect safety, aesthetics, and future maintenance. If a crew runs into a roof issue, places conduit in an unexpected location, or leaves without clearly explaining the next steps, the result can be delays, additional service visits, or repair costs.
One commenter put that risk bluntly, adding, “Confirm who submits the paperwork, and get it in writing.”
Still, going solar is one of the best ways to save money on home energy costs, especially when homeowners take the time to compare their options. If you’re considering a system, exploring EnergySage can help you get free solar installation estimates and compare quotes. Those who do can save up to $10,000 on an installation.
Free shopping tools can also help long before installation day. EnergySage’s solar map shows the average cost of a home solar panel system on a state-by-state level, along with details on solar panel incentives for each state. Together, those resources can help readers get the best price for rooftop solar panels and access available incentives.
💡Go deep on the latest news and trends shaping the residential solar landscape
Get TCD’s free newsletters for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here.
© 2025 THE COOL DOWN COMPANY. All Rights Reserved. Do not sell or share my personal information. Reach us at hello@thecooldown.com.

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Aug. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SolarWindow Technologies, Inc. (Symbol: WNDW), today announced commercial launch of ElectroFlex^® – ultra-thin, high-power, flexible ‘peel-and-stick’ solar engineered to generate electricity on curved and flat surfaces traditional solar could never reach.
Today’s commercial launch of ElectroFlex^® expands the Company’s portfolio beyond its development of LiquidElectricity^®, coatings which could transform ordinary glass into electricity-generating windows for skyscrapers, tall towers, and commercial buildings.

SolarWindow Launches First of its Planned Innovative Energy Products
“In my recent letter to shareholders, I shared plans to release a family of innovative energy products unlike anything available today. ElectroFlex^® is the first, and I look forward to additional new-product releases as we grow our SolarWindow portfolio to span across the full energy value chain” said Amit Singh, President and Chief Executive Officer of SolarWindow Technologies.

ElectroFlex^® is initially available exclusively to America’s Tier-1 OEM manufacturers and expanding to select North American and Asian markets in the upcoming quarters. ElectroFlex^® is targeting transportation, marine, aerospace, architectural, agricultural, infrastructure and utilities, and specialty vehicle markets.
Transformative Energy: No Limits on Where Solar Can Go
With ‘peel-and-stick’ capabilities, ElectroFlex^® has no frame and no rigid glass. It is designed to generate electricity on irregular structures and could be applied to data centers and buildings, rooftops of fleet vehicles and commercial trucks, contoured panels of trains, drones, and airplanes, and other curved surfaces that have previously never been able to carry solar. Solar without the solar panel. ElectroFlex^® overcomes the bulk, rigidity, and eyesore of traditional solar. These flexible, lightweight solar sheets eliminate the need for bulky racks, mounting frames, reinforced structures, freight, and engineering and installation crews that heavy rigid glass solar panels depend on.

SolarWindow Applies ElectroFlex^® to Curved Pipeline,
Demonstrating Flexibility

For OEM manufacturers, ElectroFlex^® generates electricity where it was never possible before. Curved surfaces. Rooftops conventional solar would overload. Vehicles that could never carry the weight. Surfaces that were simply off-limits before. ElectroFlex^® opens the door to all of them.
ElectroFlex^® turns passive surface area that is otherwise dead weight into an active source of onboard power, extending range, reducing generator and shore-power or grid dependence. When manufacturers add ElectroFlex^®, customers can feel the value of immediately.
Ordering ElectroFlex^®
ElectroFlex^® is delivered to OEM manufacturers as a complete custom solar energy-generation solution. ElectroFlex^® is engineered, designed, modeled, and installed by SolarWindow technicians for each unique product application. All wiring, harnessing, electrical systems balancing, and power delivery are engineered and provided by SolarWindow.

Technicians Preparing ElectroFlex^® for Installation
SolarWindow will release detailed ElectroFlex^® product information in the upcoming weeks, and anticipates product certification updates to follow.
Tier-1 OEM manufacturers evaluating ElectroFlex^® for their own applications can request specifications, samples, and integration support via the Company’s website at http://www.solarwindow.com or by calling +1(800) 213-0689.
Beyond Solar: An Integrated Energy Platform
Beyond ElectroFlex^®, the Company is pursuing expansion across the full energy value chain, including highly innovative energy generation, optimization, storage, and delivery products. This disciplined approach builds SolarWindow not as a single-product company, but as an integrated energy technology platform.

ElectroFlex^® is the first commercial result of SolarWindow management’s ongoing evaluation of complementary and adjacent enabling technologies, materials, and manufacturing processes, which the Company believes could expand its product portfolio, accelerate commercialization, strengthen its route to market, and drive future revenue.
The Company’s expansion program includes strategic investments, acquisitions, supply agreements, and other transactions. Market conditions, product regulatory certifications, financial uncertainty, and tariffs can all result in challenges. There can be no assurance that these efforts will result in any transaction, that any transaction pursued will be consummated on acceptable terms, if at all, or that any completed transaction will prove successful or profitable.
A New SolarWindow
Alongside the ElectroFlex^® launch, SolarWindow today unveiled a completely redesigned website at http://www.solarwindow.com.
The new site reflects the Company’s evolution from a single-technology developer into an energy technology platform with a portfolio of products, and gives shareholders, manufacturers, and prospective partners a clear view of each product line, its stage of development, and its market applications.

SolarWindow Technologies, Inc.
SolarWindow Technologies, Inc. (Symbol: WNDW; http://www.solarwindow.com) is an energy technology company developing and commercializing solar products designed to generate electricity on the surfaces of everyday products and buildings, including surfaces that conventional solar panels cannot serve.
The Company’s portfolio currently spans two product lines:
ElectroFlex^® is an ultra-thin, ultra-lightweight, flexible solar product available today for manufacturers, bonding directly to flat and curved surfaces without racks, frames, or mounting hardware, across transportation, marine, aerospace, agricultural, infrastructure, and specialty vehicle applications.
LiquidElectricity^® is a proprietary transparent coating that generates electricity when applied to glass and plastics, producing power under natural, artificial, low, shaded, and reflected light conditions.

The SolarWindow Promise: Engineer, design, and ultimately manufacture and deliver products which reward customers with affordable clean energy for a healthier, safer, and more sustainable planet. SolarWindow is ClearlyElectric^®.
SolarWindow Contacts
For additional information on SolarWindow, please call Amit Singh at 1 (800) 213-0689, or visit http://www.solarwindow.com, follow us on X @solartechwindow or on Facebook.
To receive future press releases via email, please visit: https://solarwindow.com/join-our-email-list/.
To view the full HTML text of this release, please visit: https://solarwindow.com/media/news-events/.

Social Media Disclaimer
SolarWindow stockholders, investors and others should note that we announce material information to the public about the Company through a variety of means, including our website (https://www.solarwindow.com/investors), through press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls, via our corporate X account (@solartechwindow), Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/SolarWindowTechnologies) and LinkedIn page (https://www.linkedin.com/company/solar-window-technology/) in order to achieve broad, non-exclusionary distribution of information to the public and to comply with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. We encourage our investors and others to monitor and review the information we make public in these locations as such information could be deemed to be material information. Please note that this list may be updated from time to time.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains information about SolarWindow that may constitute “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other securities laws. These forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations or beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions about future events. We intend the forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements in those laws as applicable. Although SolarWindow believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements and the assumptions upon which they are based are reasonable as at the time made, no assurance can be given that such expectations and assumptions will prove to have been correct.
Generally, we have identified such forward-looking statements by using such words as “aim,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “future,” “goal,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “will,” and similar expressions or by using future dates in connection with any discussion of, among other things, statements expressing general views about the future development, manufacture, production, marketing, or sale of SolarWindow products, or the execution of manufacturing, licensing, or partnership agreements, that we expect or anticipate will occur in the future, as well as anticipated cost savings, potential capital and operational improvements, and changes in the global economic environment. However, the absence of these words or similar expressions does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts, but instead represent only our beliefs regarding future goals, plans and expectations about our prospects for the future and other events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of our control. It is possible that actual results may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results indicated in these forward-looking statements.

Caution should be taken not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements because such statements speak only as of the date when made and are subject to numerous factors and uncertainties, including but not limited to adverse economic conditions, intense competition, lack of meaningful research results, entry of new competitors and products, adverse federal, state and local government regulation, inadequate capital, unexpected costs and operating deficits, increases in general and administrative costs, termination of contracts or agreements, technological obsolescence, technical problems relating to manufacturing methodologies, price increases for supplies and components, litigation and other proceedings, adverse publicity and news coverage, inability to carry out research, development and commercialization plans, loss or retirement of key executives and research scientists, failure to obtain required regulatory approvals, inflationary factors, and other risks. All information in this press release is as of the date set forth above. SolarWindow does not undertake any duty to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in its expectations, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. No statement herein should be considered an offer or a solicitation of an offer for the purchase or sale of any securities.
Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:
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China’s July 2026 installations improved on MoM and YoY basis, signaling some recovery in project activity 
Solar additions in the first seven months remained well below the unusually high 2025 levels, as per NEA data 
Policy changes continue to reshape China’s solar market and influence project deployment 
China installed 14.08 GW AC of new solar PV capacity in July 2026, representing a 27.5% improvement year-on-year (YoY), according to data from the National Energy Administration (NEA).  
Even on monthly basis, the July additions improved over 12.48 GW AC the country installed in June this year, and 8.68 GW AC in the month of May.  
While this can be seen as a rebound after a sharp slowdown earlier in the year, on cumulative basis solar PV additions remained well below last year’s level.  
The latest figures show that China added 86.15 GW AC of solar capacity between January and July 2026, a 61.4% decline from the 223.25 GW AC installed during the same period in 2025. The unusually high installation base in 2025 was of course a result of 92.92 GW AC the country added in the month of May, ahead of the expiration of feed-in-tariff (FIT) regime from June 1, 2025 to market-oriented pricing mechanism (see China Sets New Annual Solar PV Installation Record In 2025). 
The policy change has made project economics more dependent on market electricity prices and has contributed to a slower pace of new installations in 2026.  
Solar additions fell sharply during the first half of the year, with 72.07 GW AC installed between January and June, down 66% from the same period in 2025, according to the China Photovoltaic Industry Association (see CPIA: China’s H1 2026 Solar PV Installations Drop 66% YoY).  
July’s recovery, therefore, does not yet indicate a broad return to the installation levels seen in previous years.  
Solar industry analyst Frank Haugwitz of Apricum-The Cleantech Advisory expects relatively flat demand in the near term, noting that August and September are typically weaker installation months ahead of China’s October national holidays.  
The CPIA has already lowered its full-year 2026 installation expectations for China to around 180 GW AC to 240 GW AC (see CPIA: China Solar Installations To Dip In 2026 Before Resuming Growth).  
Despite the slowdown in new additions, China’s solar fleet continues to expand rapidly. The country’s cumulative installed solar PV capacity had reached about 1.29 TW by the end of July, up more than 16% YoY, as per the NEA, while the total wind energy capacity had reached 690 GW with 19.5% increase.  
TaiyangNews 2024

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A solar farm has been installed to power the bicommunal Mia Milia wastewater treatment plant, the Nicosia district government said on Wednesday.
It said the solar farm will have a maximum capacity of 1,081 kilowatt-peak, and will “utilise solar energy to cover part of the plant’s electricity needs”.
“In this way, the environmental footprint of the station’s operation is expected to be significantly reduced,” it said.
“The completion of the project is another important step towards a more sustainable and environmentally friendly operation of wastewater management infrastructure.”
The project was constructed by the United Nations development project with funding from the European Union, while the Nicosia district government said that the work to connect it to the plant’s power supply “were coordinated and supervised by the team of [Turkish Cypriot Nicosia mayor] Mehmet Harmanci”.
It added that it has had “very good coordination over time” with him, and that with the solar farm now connected to the plant’s power supply, “the works have now been completed and the solar farm has been put into operation”.
Solar panels have now been installed at the Mia Milia plant
Tom is the Cyprus Mail’s chief reporter. An award-winning journalist, he speaks four languages fluently, watches his local football team home and away, and is an avid traveller.
Since 1945, Cyprus Mail has been the trusted source for breaking Cyprus news and independent journalism. From politics, government and the economy to culture, society and everyday life, our newsroom delivers timely reporting, independent journalism, clear analysis and balanced coverage from across the island.
With correspondents on the ground and a strong focus on public interest, we bring you the latest developments as they happen — alongside context that helps explain why they matter. Whether you are a resident, an expat or following Cyprus from abroad, Cyprus Mail keeps you informed with reliable news and real-time updates on the stories shaping the country.

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Robotics & Automation News
Where Innovation Meets Imagination
August 26, 2026 by Sam Francis
It’s not just about the installation of more solar panels for the next generation of renewable energy. It has to do with the utilization of every single square meter of PV surface in an even better way, and with the use of a combination of new PV technologies and smarter installation methods, energy storage solutions, automation, and intelligent power management.
This change is especially critical for those systems that do not connect to the grid because each watt counts. Local utility connections are often unavailable for remote workshops, agricultural facilities, cabins, telecommunications sites or small industrial facilities.
A Solar system must thus be designed to ensure that energy is generated as much as possible and energy is managed efficiently during the day.
A promising advancement is bifacial photovoltaics (PVs). Bifacial modules are able to absorb light that reflects or scatters onto their back surface as well as the front surface, whereas a conventional monofacial panel will only absorb light on the front surface.
This enables the installation to produce more electricity from the same fundamental panel footprint if the design is right.
For system designers, this provides a significant opportunity: no longer is the efficiency based on the rated wattage that’s printed on a panel.
Other factors such as ground reflectivity, elevation of panels, spacing, tilt angle, and surface reflectivity of surrounding surfaces can affect the amount of additional energy that reaches the back of a bifacial module.
These factors have been shown to be important in research. A long-term field study has recently been conducted and has shown that the system-level benefit of bifacial varies from 9% to 15% depending on the ground conditions, with large gains being seen with white gravel.
An easy rule for homeowners and businesses weighing the installation of bifacial solar panels The panel is just the beginning. Its back mounting capability can be utilized to the maximum depending on the surrounding environment and mounting configuration.
Efficiency – while often discussed with regards to cell technology – is much more complex in a real system.
High-efficiency cell architectures like TOPCon and heterojunction can be integrated in the modern design, plus bifacial configuration brings more energy capture.
The International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme indicates that efficiencies over 60% can be realized on the rear-side of bifacial cells and, in some technologies, over 90% of the front-side efficiency.
The next step is to make these improvements part of intelligence energy systems.
A smart off-grid installation can manage the solar generation, batteries, electrical loads and backup equipment based on power requirements and the state of the solar array.
Solar energy can be used to charge batteries or to provide energy to flexible loads when they are not required when the sun is shining. Stored electricity can then be used to provide power to critical equipment during periods of low PV generation.
This method is changing the way solar energy is generated, which is beyond the scope of a generation source, into a managed energy ecosystem.
The brain power needed to generate renewable energy is also coming before a solar system starts to produce electricity.
The construction of solar energy itself is becoming more and more automated. As of 2026, AES has placed over 180,000 solar modules (over 100 MW) on the ground, utilizing the Maximo robotic system.
The system aims to operate on active construction sites, with real-time perception capabilities to deal with a changing environment, including modules and equipment, weather, and gradient.
That’s important because the work on utility-scale solar projects is repetitive and requires a lot of manpower. Installation teams can benefit from automation in managing bigger and heavier modules, consistency, and faster construction.
During a field demonstration, another solar installation robot, unveiled by Rosendin, placed modules with LiDAR, GPS and mapping technology without the need for a human operator, with panels being installed in about half the time as a typical manual process.
The overall picture is pretty clear: robotics and renewable energy are beginning to go hand in hand.
The same concepts can be used in a smaller application that’s off the grid.
A shed, workshop, remote office or agricultural outbuilding may require only a relatively low level of electric power, however it can be attractive to make good use of design of the system.
Rather than just installing the largest possible array, designers can take into account when the electrical loads will be used and battery capacity, and how that relates to the available sunlight and the solar array orientation.
This is where off-grid power solutions come in handy. A well-designed system can supply power to lights, communication equipment, tools and pumps, monitoring systems and other loads without connecting to a conventional electrical power grid.
Of particular significance is energy storage. The solar generation schedules vary according to the weather and availability of daylight and many electrical loads operate according to human schedules, not the availability of solar energy. Batteries fill the gap, so energy produced can still be there when it’s needed.
Smart controllers can go one step further and adjust for critical loads, check the battery SoC, and prioritize the use of available solar energy where it would be most beneficial.
Bifacial can also inspire designers to consider space behind a solar array.
The back of a bifacial panel is partly dependent on reflected light, so surfaces with high reflectivity can boost the irradiance on the backside. Spacing panels further apart, placing modules off the ground and using the correct ground material can therefore have an impact on the overall energy yield.
This only makes the design of solar increasingly multidisciplinary. The performance of a PV installation depends on both electrical engineering and materials science, mechanical design, software, and environment.
It seems solar power will not be a single product, but a collection of innovative advances. Rather, it will be through a multitude of improvements that progress will be achieved.
More efficient cells will generate more output per square unit. Useful light can be captured by bifacial modules from both sides of the module. Reverting to better mounting strategies can help to increase the irradiance on the backside.
The batteries can store energy during the sunny time of day and release it when it is needed. Smart controllers can make the most effective use of that energy. And, robotics can make the construction process of large-scale Photovoltaic installations quicker and safer.
This turns into a transformation from merely putting up solar panels to creating full energy systems.
The difference is particularly useful for anyone who does not have access to the grid. With no utility connection to rely on, it is not an option but a necessity to be efficient, reliable and smart with energy.
As PV technology advances, the most sophisticated PV systems will consist of cutting-edge PV equipment and innovative system design.
Solar energy is not only cleaner, but more automated, more efficient and significantly more flexible in locations where traditional energy infrastructure is lacking.
Filed Under: Energy, Infrastructure, Technology Tagged With: battery storage, bifacial solar panels, energy storage, off-grid power, photovoltaic systems, renewable energy, smart energy, solar automation, solar energy, solar power, solar robotics, solar technology
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The German Renewable Energy Federation (BEE) has called for Germany’s future electricity grid planning to give a greater role to battery storage, demand-side flexibility and other tools capable of reducing congestion and limiting the need for additional grid infrastructure.
The federation submitted its position on 24 August on the second draft of Germany’s Electricity Grid Development Plan (NEP) 2025–2037/2045. While it acknowledges progress in some of the assumptions used by transmission system operators, BEE argues that the scenarios remain too conservative regarding future electricity demand, onshore wind deployment, domestic electrolysis and, particularly, the future expansion of energy storage.
One of BEE’s main criticisms is that the plan assumes no further expansion of large-scale battery storage after 2037.
“A future-proof electricity system needs all available flexibility options in addition to grid expansion. Storage and flexible consumers will help avoid grid bottlenecks, reduce redispatch and thereby limit additional grid expansion,” said Christine Falken-Großer, Managing Director of BEE.
The federation also considers the assumptions used to model large-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) insufficient. The current NEP draft assumes that large batteries will continue to have a two-hour storage duration through 2045.
BEE argues that this configuration is already too short for unrestricted market access, optimising photovoltaic generation and improving the operation of hybrid storage systems. It therefore expects storage durations to increase from two hours to three or four hours over the coming years.
The association proposes that the NEP assume 50% of new large-scale battery capacity will have a four-hour duration, 25% a three-hour duration and the remaining 25% the current two-hour configuration.
For smaller battery systems, the NEP currently assumes a 2.5-hour duration. BEE proposes increasing the duration of part of future additions to three hours, particularly as the share of marketed rooftop photovoltaic generation increases.
BEE is also proposing an adjusted “Scenario C+” to assess how Germany’s grid expansion requirements could change if large-scale storage systems were operated specifically to support the electricity network.
The analysis should consider both charging and discharging behaviour, as well as mechanisms that could influence the regional deployment of large-scale batteries.
The objective would be to determine how much grid expansion could be avoided if battery storage were located and operated primarily to reduce congestion.
BEE also proposes allowing eligible large-scale battery systems to participate in upward redispatch, increasing their electricity injection when required by the grid.
BEE’s criticism extends beyond battery storage. The federation considers that the potential of demand-side management across industry, businesses and households is modelled too conservatively.
It also argues that Germany should consider higher domestic electrolyser capacity, both to produce green hydrogen and to use electrolysers as flexible loads capable of absorbing periods of surplus renewable generation.
Another area highlighted by BEE is data centre electricity consumption. The federation argues that the assumptions through 2045 do not sufficiently reflect the expected increase in electricity demand associated with digitalisation and the growing use of artificial intelligence.
More broadly, BEE warns that conservative electrification assumptions could result in Germany underestimating both future electricity consumption and the grid infrastructure required to accommodate it.
Regarding renewable generation, BEE supports the photovoltaic deployment pathways included in the plan and welcomes the increase in assumed full-load hours for onshore wind to 2,600 and 2,700 hours per year, depending on the scenario.
However, the federation maintains that the assumed onshore wind expansion pathways remain below the levels required for a cost-efficient and resilient electricity system.
For offshore wind, BEE considers the assumed full-load hours plausible but warns that deployment expectations remain highly ambitious given uncertainties surrounding site availability, investment conditions, supply chains and increasing wake effects between wind farms.
BEE is also calling for the NEP to incorporate the potential effects of Germany’s planned reform of the grid tariff system, known as AgNes, which is intended to create stronger incentives for generators, storage facilities and consumers to operate in ways that support the grid.
The federation argues that planners should examine how these incentives could influence the location and operation of battery storage and other flexible assets, potentially reducing congestion, redispatch costs and the amount of additional grid infrastructure required.
While BEE supports the NEP’s economic assessment of the trade-off between grid expansion and congestion management, it is calling for greater transparency over the criteria used.
In particular, the federation wants Germany to quantify more clearly how much battery storage and flexible demand could contribute to avoiding grid bottlenecks before determining how much additional grid expansion is actually necessary.
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India’s renewable energy capacity reached 288GW as of June 30, 2026, accounting for about 54% of the country’s total installed energy capacity, according to JMK Research & Analytics’ Q2 2026 India RE Update.
Solar remained the largest contributor to India’s renewable energy capacity, accounting for 56%, or 162GW. Wind followed with 20% (57GW), while large hydro accounted for 18%, (52GW). Bio Power and small hydro accounted for 4% and 2%, respectively.
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India also had around 149GW of solar, wind, hybrid and storage projects in the pipeline as of June 30, 2026. The capacity is likely to be commissioned over the next 4-5 years.
Another 48GW of projects were in the bidding phase, where tenders have been issued but auctions have not yet concluded.
According to JMK, India added about 19GW of utility-scale solar capacity between January and June 2026, representing about 32% higher installations compared with H1 2025, JMK said.
Rooftop solar additions reached approximately 6.4GW during H1 2026, a 104% increase over H1 2025. The growth was primarily driven by the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSGMBY) [subscription required], which accounted for the majority of rooftop solar installations during the period.
The off-grid/distributed solar segment added approximately 842.9MW during H1 2026, marking a 3% year-on-year increase over H1 2025.
India added approximately 6.87GW of utility-scale solar capacity during Q2 2026, a 43% decline from Q1 2026. JMK attributed the decline primarily to the implementation of Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) List-II compliance from June 1, 2026, which created procurement and compliance challenges amid limited availability of eligible domestic cells and contributed to project commissioning delays.
JMK expects about 15.5GW of solar capacity to be installed over the next two quarters.
Renewable energy accounted for 26.35% of India’s total power generation of 523.06 billion units (BUs) in Q2 2026, up from 22% in Q1 2026, the report said.
Total renewable generation stood at 137.81BUs, registering a 33.8% quarter-on-quarter increase from 103.33BUs in Q1 2026. Solar contributed 45.56% of total renewable energy generation, at 62.79BU, making it the largest source of clean electricity during the quarter.
According to the report, renewable energy additions during Q2 2026 remained concentrated in a small number of states. Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra collectively accounted for approximately 64% of total solar and wind capacity additions.
India’s variable renewable energy (VRE) curtailment surged to 1,874.09 million units (MUs) in Q2 2026, a 558.5% quarter-on-quarter increase from 284.59MUs in Q1 2026, the report said.
The share of renewable energy generation that was curtailed also increased from 0.28% to 1.36% during the quarter.
Solar accounted for the majority of curtailed energy at 1,601.51MUs. Solar and wind curtailment increased by 524.4% and 870.9%, respectively, compared with Q1 2026.
Q2 2026 recorded the highest quarterly VRE curtailment in the period shown, exceeding the previous peak of 1,236.32MUs in Q4 2025 by 51.6%.
India’s total inverter shipments declined by 35% in Q2 2026 compared with Q1 2026, reflecting a quarter-on-quarter slowdown in market activity.
String inverters accounted for 54% of total inverter shipments, marginally ahead of central inverters at 46%. Sungrow led string inverter shipments with a 22% share, followed by TBEA at 14%, Solis at 12%, and Sineng and Deye at 11% each.
In the central inverter segment, Sungrow and Sineng each held a 30% share, followed by Hopewind at 24%. Together, the three companies accounted for 84% of central inverter shipments.
Across the overall inverter market, Sungrow led Q2 2026 shipments with a 26% share, followed by Sineng at 20% and Hopewind at 12%. The three leading suppliers together accounted for 58% of total inverter shipments.
Hopewind also strengthened its position during the quarter, with its share increasing by 4% in Q2 2026. TBEA, Solis, Deye and FIMER accounted for 8%, 7%, 6% and 6%, respectively, collectively contributing 27% of total shipments.
India’s total module shipments declined by 34% in Q2 2026 compared with Q1 2026, reflecting a significant quarter-on-quarter slowdown in module demand.
Waaree led module shipments with a 22% share, followed by Rayzon Solar at 13% and Adani at 10%. The top five players together accounted for 60% of total module shipments.
Waaree strengthened its market leadership during the quarter, with its share increasing from 18% in Q1 2026 to 22% in Q2 2026.
Rayzon Solar also significantly strengthened its market position, with its market share increasing by 5% and moving from fourth position to second among manufacturers.
India issued 8 renewable energy tenders with a total capacity of 4GW during Q2 2026 (April-June), according to the report. Tendering activity declined by 24% compared with Q1 2026 and by 18% compared with Q2 2025 (5GW).
Wind dominated tendering during the quarter, accounting for nearly 63% of the total capacity issued. The RE with Storage segment accounted for 1.55GW of tendered capacity, while solar tendering activity stood at 256MW.
JMK attributed the decline in tender issuance to the easing of the financial year-end acceleration seen in Q1, with procuring agencies shifting their focus towards executing the large existing project pipeline.
Central agencies led tender issuance in Q2 2026, floating 3.20GW and accounting for 79% of the total tendered capacity.
Among the key issuances, Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI) floated a 2000MW wind tender and a 1200MW/4800MWh RE with storage tender, leading tendering activity pan India.
State agencies accounted for a relatively smaller share of around 21% (850MW).
The state-level activity was primarily driven by GUVNL’s 250MW wind tender, PSPCL’s 250MW solar tender and RUMSL’s 200MW Peak Power Supply tender.
In April 2026, MNRE designated SECI as sole Renewable Energy Implementing Agency (REIA) for issuance of RE procurement bids.
Around 3GW was allotted across solar and RE+ storage segments under 3 tenders in Q2 2026, marking a 52% decrease over Q1 2026 while increasing 32% on a year-on-year compared to Q2 2025.
RE+ storage accounted for the largest share of awarded capacity, with about 2.5GW allotted under 2 tenders. This represented about 83% of the total capacity awarded during the quarter.
On a year-on-year basis, RE+ storage auction completion saw an increase of almost 50%, showing consistent growth the quarters.
Only one solar tender was awarded in Q2 2026, with 500MW of capacity. This marked a 52% increase compared to Q1 2026 (1.04GW). No significant tenders were awarded under the wind-solar segments.
A total of 3010MW of capacity was awarded across three tenders during Q2 2026, all under the solar and storage segments.
The lowest tariff discovered during the quarter was INR 2.6/kWh under SECI’s 10MW Solar with 10MW/20MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) tender issued in February 2026. Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company’s (MSEDCL) 2500MW RTC Power tender discovered the highest tariff of INR 5.9/kWh.
The cumulative capacity was awarded to six players private sector entities, with Adani bagging the highest capacity and being the sole winner in MSEDCL’s 2500MW RTC tender.
India’s renewable energy sector attracted around US$4.8 billion in Q2 2026, a 126% quarter-on-quarter increase from US$2.1 billion in Q1 2026, according to JMK Research & Analytics.
The increase marked a strong recovery from the relatively subdued Q1 2026, with investment levels broadly in line with Q2 2025.
JMK said RE investments remain episodic and linked to large transactions.
Debt was the largest funding source at US$2.8 billion, followed by M&A at US$1.4 billion and equity at US$0.53 billion. Bond issuances remained absent for the second consecutive quarter.
The rebound was driven by large-ticket transactions including Avaada Group’s US$950 million debt closure, Inox Clean Energy’s US$629 million acquisition of Vena Energy India and ACME Solar Holdings’ US$293 million Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP).
India’s total solar module manufacturing capacity reached 233GW as of June 2026, with 24GW added during Q2 2026, according to the report. The expansion came alongside a rise in domestic solar cell manufacturing capacity, although wafer, ingot and polysilicon production remained constrained.
Of India’s total installed solar module manufacturing capacity, 193.14GW is enlisted under the ALMM, while the remaining capacity lies outside the approved list.
Solar cell manufacturing capacity reached 42GW as of Q2 2026, with 2.6GW added during the quarter. Of the total cell manufacturing capacity, around 27.23GW is enlisted under ALMM-II.
Wafer and ingot manufacturing capacity remained unchanged at 8.12GW as of June 2026, with no new additions during the quarter.
Domestic polysilicon production is still absent due to high capital and energy requirements, technology constraints, and China’s cost and scale advantage. JMK said the upstream manufacturing segment still lacks policy support, despite the government’s recent plan to launch a scheme supporting 10GW of domestic polysilicon capacity.
Thirteen manufacturers collectively added 24GW of module and 2.6GW of cell production capacity in Q2 2026.
Module manufacturing capacity additions were driven by established players including Waaree Energies, Vikram Solar, Premier Energies, Rayzon Solar and Adani, as well as new entrants including GB Solar, Aroma Solar and SLR Solar.
Among the new entrants, GB Solar and Aroma Solar entered the market with module manufacturing capacities of 2GW and 1.2GW, respectively.
Vikram Solar led manufacturing capacity additions during the quarter, with the largest expansion of 6GW for its Gangaikondan facility in Tamil Nadu. Premier Energies added 5.6GW of module manufacturing capacity through the commissioning of its production plant in Seetharampur, Telangana.
On the cell manufacturing side, a cumulative capacity of 2.65GW was added by 2 players in Q2 2026. Emmvee added 1.4GW of capacity in Bengaluru, followed by Jupiter International.
India’s solar module exports remained subdued in Q2 2026, with only 220MW exported by five players. Heightened US tariff uncertainty and evolving trade barriers reduced the attractiveness of India’s key export market and prompted manufacturers to prioritize domestic demand.
Waaree led India’s solar module exports, shipping 195.8MW of tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) modules and accounting for approximately 93% of total module exports during the quarter.
Goldi recorded the second-highest export volume at 10.53MW, followed by Saatvik at 9.79MW. Goldi’s exports declined sharply by 77% compared with the previous quarter. Kosol and Solex recorded export volumes of 3.12MW and 0.587MW, respectively.
In value terms, India’s solar PV module exports reached US$62.43 million in Q2 2026, with the United States accounting for 95% of the total export value.
India imported solar modules worth US$96.15 million during the same period, with China and Vietnam contributing 56% and 34%, respectively.
Solar PV module imports witnessed a sharp decline of 75% in Apr-Jun 2026 due to tighter ALMM requirements, the expansion of domestic module manufacturing capacity, and the June 2026 implementation of ALMM List-II, accelerating the shift toward domestically manufactured modules.
Solar cell imports moved in the opposite direction. India’s solar cell imports stood at US$1166.03 million in Q2 2026, with Indonesia accounting for 42%, China 26%, and Thailand 15%.
Solar cell imports increased by 39% quarter-on-quarter from Q1 2026, as manufacturers and developers stockpiled imported cells ahead of ALMM List-II, while limited domestic cell capacity remained insufficient to meet rapidly growing module manufacturing and project demand.
Global TOPCon module prices increased by 17.3% QoQ, primarily due to China’s removal of the PV export VAT rebate from April 2026, higher silver costs, and supply-side constraints in the solar manufacturing value chain.
TOPCon cell prices decreased by 14.5% QoQ, primarily due to oversupply, weak downstream demand, falling wafer and polysilicon costs and reduced silver prices. Domestic module prices moved lower during Q2 2026.
Monocrystalline passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) solar modules reflected a 2.8% decrease from Q1 2026 and a 4% fall compared to Q2 2025.
TOPCon solar modules reflected a 2.1% decrease from Q1 2026 and a 6.9% fall compared to Q2 2025. Domestic content requirement (DCR) TOPCon modules were approximately 40% more expensive than non-DCR TOPCon modules.
India’s renewable energy transition, from solar PV and energy storage to grid integration, will be a key topic of discussion at the Renewable Energy India (REI) Expo, co-located with the Energy Storage Summit India (ESS India), in Greater Noida on 22-24 October 2026. For the full agenda and booking details, click here.

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The first phase of the Koshkonong Solar Farm near Cambridge, above, is nearing completion. Now, Chicago-based Invenergy is proposing a second project about half the size of the first, which is dividing rural residents.
TOWN OF CHRISTIANA — Residents of this small farming community in eastern Dane County spent years fighting what was then Wisconsin’s largest solar farm.
Invenergy developer Sam Heagney fields questions from residents opposed to an expanded solar project in the town of Christiana in June.
Tara Vasby’s home on Clear View Road in Cambridge is surrounded on three sides by solar panels. Vasby said she has stopped driving on certain roads near her house because the sight of hills covered in solar panels upsets her too much. A former staff member to Democrats in the state Legislature, Vasby said she has concluded that “neither party is interested in saving rural Wisconsin” by giving local governments the tools to stop or shape them.

Dane County Sup. Kerry Marren drives through the evolving Koshkonong Solar Farm project near Cambridge. The large-scale projects have changed the character of the small rural community, she said, driving up the price of farmland.
Tara Vasby, whose property abuts the Koshkonong Solar Farm project in Cambridge, looks out an array of recently installed panels near her property.
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Amid the rolling green fields in eastern Dane County, seventh-generation farm Swaindale Genetics is preparing to host Saturday’s Dane County B…
Koshkonong is the twelfth and largest solar project approved by the commission but the first of its size in Dane County. It includes the large…
The 10th such solar project considered by Wisconsin regulators, the project highlights the tensions brewing as Wisconsin utilities seek to rep…
The landscape is a rural idyll, a farmer’s dream. That’s also what appealed to the founders of Kettle Forge Golf Club.
While Dane County loses farmland to sprawl, one small town has spent almost 50 years paying farmers not to sell.
The average agricultural sale value per acre in Wisconsin has risen 70% since 2020. Counties in Southern Wisconsin led the way.
The landscape is a rural idyll, a farmer’s dream. That’s also what appealed to the founders of Kettle Forge Golf Club.
While Dane County loses farmland to sprawl, one small town has spent almost 50 years paying farmers not to sell.
The town of Christiana is asking the courts to reverse the Public Service Commission’s approval of the Koshkonong Solar Energy Center, which w…
Wisconsin law requires a permit to build a large power plant. The standards are different depending on who’s building it.
Invenergy developer Sam Heagney fields questions from residents opposed to an expanded solar project in the town of Christiana in June.
Dane County Sup. Kerry Marren drives through the evolving Koshkonong Solar Farm project near Cambridge. The large-scale projects have changed the character of the small rural community, she said, driving up the price of farmland.
Tara Vasby, whose property abuts the Koshkonong Solar Farm project in Cambridge, looks out an array of recently installed panels near her property.
Tara Vasby’s home on Clear View Road in Cambridge is surrounded on three sides by solar panels. Vasby said she has stopped driving on certain roads near her house because the sight of hills covered in solar panels upsets her too much. A former staff member to Democrats in the state Legislature, Vasby said she has concluded that “neither party is interested in saving rural Wisconsin” by giving local governments the tools to stop or shape them.
The first phase of the Koshkonong Solar Farm near Cambridge, above, is nearing completion. Now, Chicago-based Invenergy is proposing a second project about half the size of the first, which is dividing rural residents.
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Perovskite PV maker GCL Perovskite is leading the drafting of a group standard for single-junction perovskite solar modules for space applications. The Perovskite Industry Branch of the China International Association for Promotion of Science and Technology (CIAPST) organized the first drafting meeting, hosted by GCL Perovskite. The standard is intended to establish technical requirements and test methods for single-junction perovskite modules used in space, supporting their transition from technology validation to standardized, industrial-scale applications.
On the financial side, GCL Perovskite recently completed a Series D1 funding round of more than RMB 100 million, led by Jinxin Capital and other institutional investors (see China Solar PV News Snippets).
Consumer electronics company TCL Electronics plans to spin off its PV business, which includes TCL Photovoltaic Technology and SunPower, for a separate listing on the stock exchange. The company said the proposed spin-off would allow it to focus more closely on its global smart home appliance business while enabling the PV business to pursue an independent development strategy.
Note that TCL Electronics’ PV business is separate from TCL TZE (TCL Zhonghuan). TCL Electronics is part of the TCL Industries group, with its PV operations focused mainly on downstream distributed energy and services, while TCL TZE focuses primarily on PV manufacturing, including wafers, cells, and modules. The two businesses have industrial-chain and supply-chain synergies but operate under separate capital and listing platforms.
CdTe thin-film PV manufacturer Advanced Solar Power (ASP) has shipped a complete encapsulation production line for CdTe building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) to Italy. With its new supply-chain model, the company shifts from shipping finished modules to exporting individual glass substrates for local encapsulation. This could cut delivery times for customized BIPV orders in Europe from 3-4 months to less than one month while reducing international freight costs and breakage risks for large, non-standard modules.
ASP said it has also signed production-line procurement agreements with multiple partners in China and overseas. In July, the company announced plans to provide partners with its self-developed, localized complete CdTe PV building-material processing technology and encapsulation lines, together with turnkey support covering commissioning, process optimization, quality control, BIPV product development, project design, and marketing strategy (see China Solar PV News Snippets).
Energy storage manufacturer Sigenergy reported first-half 2026 revenue of RMB 9.87 billion, up 261.2% year on year, while net profit rose 201% to RMB 2.43 billion. Its solar-plus-storage series generated RMB 9.30 billion, accounting for 94.2% of total revenue and increasing 267.1% from the same period last year.
The company said Europe remained its largest market, contributing RMB 4.18 billion in revenue during the period. Asia-Pacific revenue totaled RMB 3.90 billion, up about 441%, while Mainland China revenue surged from approximately RMB 25 million a year earlier to RMB 1.30 billion. The company’s overall gross margin, however, declined to 40.5% from 51.9%, mainly due to higher raw-material costs and increased channel incentives.
Xinjiang’s regional economic planning authorities have issued a package of 14 measures to support renewable energy investment and improve utilization, as the region’s cumulative renewable capacity reached 180 GW by the end of July 2026. The ‘7+7’ policy package targets declining utilization rates by tightening project development requirements and accelerating construction of green-power and storage facilities.
The measures call for the clean-up of projects that have remained registered for one to two years without substantive construction, while newly registered projects must begin substantive work within three months. They also seek to accelerate green-power direct supply projects, concentrating solar-thermal plants and standalone energy storage projects under construction, while implementing capacity tariffs and regular dispatch mechanisms for new-type energy storage. On the consumption side, the package aligns with the national target of an 87% renewable utilization rate, requiring new energy-intensive silicon- and aluminum-based projects to meet mandatory green-power consumption ratios during energy-efficiency reviews.
TaiyangNews 2024

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The proposed IPO includes a ₹1,600 crore fresh issue, with around ₹1,200 crore earmarked for debt repayment and letter-of-credit obligations. 
Avaada Electro has moved closer to a stock market listing after filing its Updated Draft Red Herring Prospectus (UDRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The solar cell and module manufacturer is proposing an initial public offering of up to ₹7,600 crore.
The issue will comprise a fresh share sale of up to ₹1,600 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to ₹6,000 crore by promoter Avaada Ventures Private Limited. Around ₹1,200 crore from the fresh issue is proposed to be used to repay borrowings and settle letter-of-credit obligations, with the remaining funds earmarked for general corporate purposes.
The IPO comes as India’s solar manufacturing industry faces pressure from changing domestic-content requirements, global trade disruptions and weak market conditions. Vikram Solar, one of the recent major solar manufacturers to list, has traded below its offer price amid challenges in scaling up cell manufacturing.
Founded in 2021, Avaada Electro currently operates 8.5 GW of solar module manufacturing capacity and 3 GW of TOPCon cell capacity. It plans to build an integrated manufacturing chain covering ingots, wafers, cells and modules.
By FY28, the company is targeting 13.6 GW of module capacity, 12 GW of cell capacity and 3 GW of ingot and wafer capacity. Its Nagpur facility has 7 GW of module capacity and a 6 GW cell manufacturing facility, while its Dadri plant in Uttar Pradesh has 1.5 GW of module capacity.
The company is betting on N-type TOPCon technology and has introduced modules rated up to 720 Wp. Its FY26 revenue rose to ₹5,303.52 crore from ₹911.62 crore, while profit after tax increased to ₹888.74 crore from ₹173 crore.
Avaada Electro also holds a PLI award for 3 GW of integrated wafer-to-module capacity, potentially providing incentives of up to ₹961.62 crore.
As it approaches the IPO, the company’s ability to commission planned capacity, execute its 19,106 MW order book and reduce debt will remain key factors for investors amid challenging valuations for solar manufacturers.
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New Delhi : India’s clean energy transition has entered a defining phase. Solar power is no longer a future opportunity; it is already one of the strongest pillars of the country’s renewable energy growth. With India’s installed solar capacity crossing 164 GW in 2026, the country is rapidly building one of the world’s largest solar energy ecosystems. But alongside this growth, an equally important question is emerging: what happens to solar panels when they are damaged, rejected, replaced, or reach the end of their life?
This is where solar PV recycling is becoming a national priority.
Regain Energies Solutions Pvt. Ltd., a Surat, Gujarat-based CPCB-authorized solar PV recycler, is working to build a responsible, compliant, and scalable recycling ecosystem for India’s growing solar waste challenge. The company focuses on recovering valuable materials such as aluminium, silver, silicon, copper, and glass from end-of-life solar panels, damaged modules, rejected panels, broken cells, laminates, and manufacturing scrap.
For Harmeet Gandhi, Director of Regain Energies Solutions Pvt. Ltd., solar PV recycling is not just a waste-management activity. It is an important part of India’s circular economy, resource security, and clean energy future.
“India’s solar growth will be truly sustainable only when we build a strong system for responsible end-of-life management. Solar panels contain valuable materials, and these resources should return to the economy instead of being lost through unscientific disposal,” says Gandhi.
The importance of this sector is increasing rapidly. As India continues to expand solar manufacturing and solar installations, the country will also need formal systems for collection, reverse logistics, safe transportation, scientific processing, traceability, and material recovery. Without a strong recycling ecosystem, solar waste could become a major environmental and operational challenge in the coming years.
At the same time, it also represents a powerful opportunity. Solar modules contain useful industrial materials that can support domestic manufacturing and reduce dependence on virgin raw materials. Recovering aluminium, glass, copper, silicon, and silver from solar PV waste can help India move closer to a circular clean energy economy, where materials are reused, resources are conserved, and waste is converted into value.

Regain Energies is working towards this vision by strengthening the entire recycling value chain. Its focus goes beyond processing alone. The company is building capabilities across reverse logistics, aggregation, compliance documentation, safe handling, technology-led recycling, material recovery, and stakeholder partnerships. This integrated approach is important because solar waste does not come from one source alone. It can arise from manufacturers, EPC companies, developers, solar parks, rooftop projects, asset owners, damaged inventory, and rejected modules.
According to Gandhi, the future of solar recycling will depend on execution as much as technology.
“Technology is important, but the industry also needs organized collection, traceability, vendor networks, compliance systems, logistics strength, and commercially viable recovery models. Recycling at scale requires the entire ecosystem to work together,” he says.
This is especially relevant at a time when India is giving increasing attention to clean energy manufacturing, circular economy, and domestic resource recovery. Government focus on e-waste management, solar PV waste handling, recycling innovation, and critical material recovery has created a strong foundation for companies working in this sector. The next stage will require stronger industry participation, better awareness among solar asset owners, formal recycling channels, and investment in advanced recovery technologies.
Regain Energies believes that solar PV recycling should not be viewed only as a compliance requirement. It should be seen as a strategic opportunity linked to sustainability, green manufacturing, employment generation, responsible industrial growth, and long-term material security. A strong recycling ecosystem can support manufacturers, developers, EPC players, investors, banks, regulators, and customers by creating a more transparent and responsible renewable energy value chain.
The company is also strengthening its recycling capacity and operational infrastructure to support India’s growing solar PV waste volumes. Its roadmap includes improving material recovery efficiency, expanding reverse logistics networks, adopting advanced processing technologies, and building deeper collaborations with manufacturers, project developers, research institutions, logistics partners, and policymakers.
Looking ahead, Regain Energies also sees opportunities in battery recycling and other clean-tech waste streams as part of a broader platform for responsible recycling and resource recovery. As India builds more solar plants, battery storage systems, and renewable energy infrastructure, the need for end-of-life management will become increasingly important.
For Gandhi, the message is clear: clean energy must remain clean through its full life cycle.
“India has built strong momentum in solar energy. Now we must build the recycling infrastructure that ensures this growth remains sustainable for decades. Solar PV recycling is not only about managing waste; it is about recovering resources, reducing environmental impact, supporting domestic manufacturing, and creating long-term value for the country,” he says.
As India moves towards a more sustainable and resource-efficient future, companies like Regain Energies are working to ensure that the clean energy revolution is supported by an equally strong circular economy ecosystem.
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Ganesha says it will be an important day for you, Aries. Your energy and confidence are ready to take you to new heights. Today you will be able to express your thoughts with clarity, which will increase your communication skills. New opportunities may arise in the working areas, which you have to be ready to take advantage of. In social life, you can make new meetings, which will prove beneficial for you in the future. This day will be good for solving family issues, and you will be able to establish better relations with your close ones. In the field of health, take care of your routine and resort to yoga or meditation to relieve mental stress. Controlling your expenses will be a smart move, as any sudden financial need may arise. Overall, this day is for you to stay positive, just use your insight and energy properly.
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Ganesha says today is a suitable day to highlight your cognitive abilities and business skills. Today, you will be full of clarity and precision in your actions, which will increase your value among your colleagues and superiors. There is a possibility of bringing some changes to your routine, which will bring positive results for you. This is a good time to improve relations with family members. Try to resolve any old disputes, and keep communication open. In terms of health, meditation and yoga will bring mental peace. Also, take some time out of your routine for exercise. From a financial point of view, this is the right time to make a good plan for the right investment. Take a good look at the options available to you and make a wise decision. Overall, today will prove to be a day of new possibilities and positive changes for you. Be full of confidence and stay focused on your goals.
Ganesha says today will be a day full of energy and inspiration. Your confidence will increase and your thoughts will come out with clarity. On this day, you will be able to see some new possibilities in your career, which will bring you hard work. Mutual understanding and harmony will increase your relationship, which will create a happy atmosphere among the family. This is a great time to express your thoughts clearly, so do not hesitate to communicate with your partner or friends. It is important to be health conscious, a little exercise and meditation will maintain your mental and physical health. Overall, this day will bring activity and positivity for you, so make the most of all the opportunities!
Ganesha says it will be a day of information and communication for you. Your mind will be full of ideas and you will be able to express your ideas well. There is a possibility of some new opportunities in professional life, which can prove beneficial for you. It is a good time to strengthen relationships with your colleagues, so work together at the workplace. Your emotional state will also be strong. Time spent with family will give you satisfaction. If you have any old problem going on, then the right time is coming to solve it. However, you need to keep your emotions under control, so that you do not get agitated over small things. In terms of health, try to practice yoga and meditation. It will empower you both mentally and physically. Take informed decisions in financial matters; do not rush into any investments. In summary, this day will be all about communication and cooperation, which will lead to positive changes for you.
Ganesha says there will be a new energy and freshness in your thoughts, which will make your personality even more attractive. Social contacts are likely to increase, which will expand your network. You will be inspired to spend blissful time with your friends and family. Some positive changes can also be seen in the business sector. The results of your hard work will gradually start coming, and this will motivate you to move forward. Keep in mind that while sharing your ideology, work with empathy, this will strengthen your relationship with colleagues. It is important to be health conscious. A little attention and relaxation will give you mental freshness. Practicing yoga or meditation will be beneficial for you. This day will be full of positivity and new possibilities for you. Express your mind openly and do not hesitate to adopt new ideas.
Ganesha says it will prove to be a positive day for you, Taurus. You will feel energetic and full of confidence. The time has come to reap the fruits of your hard work and efforts. The workload may stress you for a while, but you will face all the challenges recognizing your strengths. Sweetness will also remain in your relationships. Spending time with your family and friends will be a source of joy for you. Conversation with someone special can give you a new vision and promote mutual understanding. A special occasion may be organized among friends or family, which will bring happiness and harmony to you. Moments spent with loved ones will give you mental peace. It is important to be health conscious. A little exercise or yoga will give peace to your mind and energy to your body. Your day will be full of happiness and positivity, just keep your thoughts and emotions balanced.
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Research conducted by Bar-Ilan University delved into the concept of agrivoltaics, where solar panels and crop growth coexist. The findings showed a marked decrease in tomato yields due to shading effects from the panels. Yet, in arid climates, this shading might alleviate drought pressures on crops. To maximize the effectiveness of agrivoltaic installations, optimizing the arrangement of panels and crop rows is vital, aiming to harmonize food and energy production.
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A tomato farm shares its land with solar panels at Bar-Ilan University in Israel (representative image). Image Credits: ChatGPT

Tomato production at the agrivoltaic facility at Bar-Ilan University in Ramat Gan, Israel, showing the experimental rows between photovoltaic arrays at different stages of growth. Image Credits: Yariv Ben Naim, Chanani Ladell and Yigal Cohen, Scientific Reports (2025)

A solar farm uses rows of photovoltaic panels to generate electricity from sunlight. Image Credits: Wikimedia Commons

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“Solar panels without batteries will stop pumping out electricity in the event of a grid failure.”
Photo Credit: iStock
A homeowner trying to decide whether rooftop solar is worth the cost raised a question many buyers face: Should solar panels be paired with a battery right away, or is that something that can wait?
In a post on Reddit, the original poster wrote, “I’ve been looking into getting solar panels for my house lately, but there’s one thing I still can’t really figure out. Is it actually worth adding a home battery storage system?” 
As Redditors in r/SolarDIY discussed, the bigger issue was not whether storage had to be installed immediately, but whether the system was built in a way that kept that option open.
Brand recognition was not the poster’s main priority. They said they were comparing Renogy, EcoFlow, and Callsun, but were “less concerned about whether a brand is well-known and more interested in how these panels actually hold up after a few years of use.”
Several replies suggested that the more important question involved household demand and local billing rules, not just equipment names. One commenter advised, “Not need, but in most cases, nowadays it makes sense to pair with some battery storage. It all depends on your usage profile and metering conditions from the utility.”
The choice of inverter came up repeatedly as a decision that could affect future costs. Another commenter pointed to the choice that could matter later: “If you get a Hybrid inverter now, you can add batteries later. If you get a PV-only inverter now, you’ll have to add AC coupling to your battery or replace your inverter later.”
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That means passing on a battery for now may be reasonable, while choosing a PV-only inverter could make a later storage upgrade much more expensive.
A battery changes how a home uses the electricity generated by its panels during the day. Instead of sending unused solar power back to the grid, storage can hold it for nighttime use, and help keep important appliances running during outages.
Whether that is worthwhile depends largely on local utility policies. If net metering is favorable, skipping a battery can still make financial sense. But in places where utilities pay less for exported solar or charge higher rates in the evening, battery storage can help households avoid buying back more expensive electricity later.
For some homeowners, day-to-day routines make storage much more appealing. One commenter described a situation that makes storage especially beneficial: “I work 10-14 hour shifts during the day,” meaning daytime electricity use at home is low while solar production is high. In that case, the commenter said, “batteries are the main component of the system; panels are just there to charge those batteries for when I need electricity.”
There was also discussion about battery lifespan. Commenters noted that modern lithium iron phosphate, or LiFePO4, systems can last much longer than older battery types, though heat management remains an important factor.
Time-of-use pricing alone can make batteries worthwhile. One commenter wrote, “If you can charge the batteries at the 10 cents overnight rate and use them during peak rates 4-9 pm saving you from paying 34 cents or more it’s a win win.”
Even for buyers who are not ready to spend more upfront, planning for storage can still be the smarter move. Choosing a hybrid inverter keeps the door open to adding a battery later without major system changes, which could preserve both flexibility and future savings.
As one commenter put it, “Solar panels without batteries will stop pumping out electricity in the event of a grid failure. Solar panels with batteries will keep stuff on in the event of a grid failure.”
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Pennsylvania Lags Far Behind on Solar. Here’s How It Could Catch Up.  Inside Climate News
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Crossboundary Energy Launches Africa’s First Solar-BESS Baseload Facility For Kamoa Copper  SolarQuarter
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Zelestra has reached full commercial operation at the 27.5 MWdc Klevenow solar plant in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, marking the renewable energy company’s first project to enter operation in Germany.
The project represents an important step in Zelestra’s expansion in the German renewable energy market, where the company is developing a pipeline of more than 2 GW across solar, wind, hybrid and battery energy storage system (BESS) projects.
Klevenow was awarded through Germany’s Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) tender system and was completed in less than six months. According to Zelestra, construction supported around 40 jobs.
The solar plant comprises approximately 42,300 photovoltaic panels and is expected to produce around 28,700 MWh of clean electricity each year.
Zelestra estimates that this generation will help avoid approximately 9,500 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, while contributing renewable electricity to commercial and industrial energy demand in the nearby Pomeranian Triangle.
Klevenow is only the first of several projects Zelestra expects to advance in Germany during 2026. The company plans to begin construction of two additional solar projects and its first German BESS project in the second half of the year.
Once these developments move forward, Zelestra expects its combined operational and construction-stage capacity in Germany to exceed 200 MW.
“Bringing Klevenow into operation is an important milestone for Zelestra in Germany. It demonstrates our ability to move quickly from development into construction and operations, while building a strong platform for further growth,” said Mathias Kuenicke, CEO Germany at Zelestra.
“With two additional solar projects and our first German BESS project expected to start construction in the coming months, we are on track to grow our capacity in the country to more than 200 MW,” Kuenicke added.
He also thanked the team responsible for delivering Klevenow on schedule and establishing the company’s first operational presence in the German market.
Zelestra’s expansion in Germany accelerated following its acquisition of East Energy in October 2024. Since then, the company has moved projects from development into construction and commercial operation as it builds a broader presence in one of Europe’s largest renewable energy markets.
Its German development pipeline now exceeds 2 GW of solar, hybrid, wind and BESS projects, indicating that battery storage and hybridisation will play an increasingly important role alongside conventional renewable generation.
Zelestra currently employs 70 people in Germany and operates offices in Berlin, Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Rostock.
With Klevenow now commercially operational and three more projects scheduled to enter construction before the end of 2026, the company is moving from its development phase towards a larger operational footprint in the German renewable energy sector.
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A single impurity in an atomically thin semiconductor can behave like a microscopic solar cell, according to a new study that visualizes photovoltaic activity at the scale of individual atoms. Researchers have shown that vanadium dopants embedded in bilayers of tungsten diselenide, or WSe₂, can create localized junctions that separate photoexcited charges within a region only about one nanometre wide. The finding challenges the traditional picture of a photovoltaic junction as an extended structure governed by depletion regions, diffusion lengths and smoothly varying electric fields. Instead, the work suggests that in two-dimensional materials, the elementary building block of a solar-energy device may be a single charged dopant capable of reshaping the fate of an exciton.
The study focuses on a van der Waals semiconductor homobilayer containing ionizing acceptors. WSe₂ is made of atomically thin sheets in which tungsten atoms are coordinated with selenium atoms, producing a layered semiconductor with strong optical responses. When two such layers are stacked, electrons and holes can occupy either the same layer or different layers, creating distinct excitonic configurations. In an intralayer exciton, the electron and hole remain in the same sheet and are strongly bound by their mutual electrostatic attraction. In an interlayer state, they are separated vertically between the two sheets. This separation can make the pair more useful for charge extraction, but converting a tightly bound intralayer exciton into a charge-separated state is difficult without an appropriate local driving force.
That driving force comes from vanadium atoms introduced into WSe₂ as acceptor dopants. An acceptor can capture electronic charge and become ionized, leaving behind a localized electrostatic potential. In conventional semiconductor devices, dopants are often treated statistically, with their collective effect described through bulk carrier densities and extended space-charge regions. At atomic thicknesses, however, the potential generated by an individual dopant can remain highly localized and can interact directly with nearby excitons. Because screening is reduced in two-dimensional crystals, Coulomb interactions are unusually strong, while excitons can possess binding energies far greater than those found in many conventional bulk semiconductors. The result is a material in which a nanoscale perturbation can influence an optical excitation over a comparable distance.
To observe this effect, the researchers used photoconductive atomic force microscopy, a technique that combines nanoscale imaging with local electrical measurements under illumination. In this approach, a conductive atomic-force-microscope probe scans across the sample while light generates mobile or partially mobile charge carriers. The probe records photocurrent as a function of position, allowing researchers to map where photoinduced electrical signals emerge. Rather than producing a uniform response across the bilayer, the measurements revealed sharply confined photocurrent hotspots centred on individual vanadium dopants. These features identify the dopants as active photovoltaic sites rather than passive chemical defects.
The most striking observation was that the polarity of the local photocurrent depended on which layer contained the dopant. Dopants positioned in the top WSe₂ layer generated a current direction opposite to that produced by dopants in the bottom layer. This reversal is a direct signature of the vertical structure of the process. A charged acceptor in one sheet modifies the local energy landscape differently from an equivalent acceptor in the other sheet. Under illumination, the resulting electric field can favour the movement of one charge carrier toward the probe or an electrode while directing the opposite carrier away from it. Switching the dopant from the upper layer to the lower layer effectively reverses the orientation of the local junction, and therefore reverses the measured current.
The local observations were supported by measurements on vertical WSe₂/V:WSe₂ homobilayer devices, in which an undoped WSe₂ layer was combined with a vanadium-doped WSe₂ layer. At the device scale, the macroscopic photocurrent increased linearly with dopant concentration. Such a relationship indicates that the active dopants contribute approximately as independent photovoltaic units over the measured range: doubling the number of ionizing acceptors approximately doubles the total photoresponse. This behaviour differs from the response expected when a conventional extended junction dominates the device. In an ordinary bulk homojunction, increasing dopant density can alter depletion widths, built-in fields, carrier transport and recombination in a strongly coupled way. Here, the data instead point to an additive collection of nanoscale junctions.
The devices also displayed a compensation voltage that remained independent of both illumination power and dopant density. A compensation voltage is the applied bias at which competing photocurrent contributions cancel, producing little or no net current. Its independence from optical intensity suggests that the voltage is not simply determined by the number of photocarriers generated. Its independence from dopant concentration likewise indicates that the underlying energy offset or local electrostatic configuration is not being substantially reshaped by the total population of dopants. In the researchers’ interpretation, this behaviour reflects the discrete nature of the junctions and the energetic alignment between the layers, rather than the broad, density-dependent electrostatics normally associated with bulk semiconductor junctions.
Photocurrent spectroscopy provided additional clues about what happens after light is absorbed. The measurements, together with quasi-classical modelling, indicate that charged vanadium dopants can locally convert tightly bound intralayer excitons into charge-separated interlayer states. Light first creates an exciton, an electrically neutral quasiparticle consisting of a bound electron and hole. Near an ionized acceptor, the local electrostatic potential perturbs the exciton and changes the relative energetic cost of keeping both carriers in the same layer. The electron and hole can then lower their energy by separating between the two sheets. The vertical displacement does not necessarily destroy the pair immediately; instead, it creates an interlayer exciton or related charge-separated configuration with a built-in dipole that can assist subsequent extraction.
The modelling places the effective exciton-dissociation region at approximately one nanometre, a length scale comparable to the thickness and interlayer spacing of the material rather than to the much larger depletion lengths common in bulk electronics. Within this tiny volume, the dopant’s electric field is sufficiently strong to compete with the exciton binding energy. This does not mean that every exciton generated anywhere in the crystal is automatically separated. Rather, excitons formed within the local capture or conversion region of a charged dopant have an enhanced probability of becoming charge separated. The photocurrent therefore emerges as a collection of point-like sources, with each source determined by the position, charge state and layer location of an individual impurity.
The discovery could reshape how researchers think about photovoltaic design in two-dimensional materials. Atomically thin homobilayers are often considered too symmetric to produce the strong internal fields required for efficient charge separation, especially when both sides of a junction are made from the same semiconductor. The study shows that chemical symmetry can be broken locally without creating a conventional interface between different materials. A sparse population of ionizing dopants can supply the required asymmetry, while the bilayer itself provides the vertical pathway for converting intralayer excitons into interlayer states. This strategy could enable nanoscale photodetectors, light-harvesting devices and optoelectronic circuits in which the active regions are positioned with atomic precision.
The work also offers a new way to connect microscopic defects with macroscopic device performance. Defects and dopants are frequently treated as sources of disorder, trapping or unwanted recombination. In this case, however, a carefully selected dopant becomes the functional centre of a photovoltaic process. The opposite signals from the two layers make it possible to identify not only where a dopant is located laterally, but also which side of the homobilayer contains it. Such layer-sensitive responses could support three-dimensional mapping of active sites in otherwise ultrathin materials. More broadly, the results suggest that future devices may be designed from individually addressable junctions rather than from uniform regions with averaged material properties.
By establishing dopant-defined point-like junctions as elementary photovoltaic units, the study brings atomic-scale electrostatics into the centre of solar-energy research. Its key message is that efficient exciton dissociation does not always require a large depletion region or a chemically distinct heterojunction. In a strongly interacting two-dimensional semiconductor, one ionized acceptor can generate a local field powerful enough to redirect an exciton within roughly a nanometre. The combination of nanoscale photocurrent imaging, layer-dependent polarity, concentration-dependent device measurements and theoretical modelling provides a coherent picture of how these atomic junctions operate. As researchers learn to control the number, position and charge state of dopants, atomically thin homobilayers could become platforms where photovoltaic functionality is engineered one microscopic junction at a time.
Subject of Research: Point-like photovoltaic junctions formed by ionizing vanadium acceptors in WSe₂ homobilayers
Article Title: Point-like photovoltaic junction in 2D semiconductor homobilayer
Article References: Vu, N.T.T., Chen, M., Ho, Y.W. et al. “Point-like photovoltaic junction in 2D semiconductor homobilayer.” Nature Nanotechnology (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-026-02251-9
Image Credits: AI Generated
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-026-02251-9
Keywords: two-dimensional semiconductors, WSe₂, vanadium doping, homobilayers, excitons, interlayer charge separation, photovoltaic junctions, photocurrent, atomic force microscopy, nanoscale optoelectronics
Tags: atomically thin heterostructures for energy conversionatomically thin solar cellsatomistic visualization of photovoltaic activitydopant-induced exciton reshapingimpact of single impurities on 2D optoelectronicsinnovative approaches to 2D semiconductorlocalized charge separation in 2D materialsnanoscale charge separation mechanismspoint-like photovoltaic junctionstwo-dimensional semiconductor photovoltaic junctionsvan der Waals heterobilayers in solar devicesvanadium dopants in WSe₂
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There’s still time to claim your solar discount: eligible Saints fans can benefit from buy one get one free on solar panels with Utilita Home until 31 August*.
Follow the steps below to claim this offer and Utilita Home will also enter you into a prize draw to win four Hospitality tickets for Saints vs Bolton, plus a signed shirt*!
All you need to do is:
Get a free online quote from Utilita Home.
Enter the offer code, ‘SAINTS26’.
Complete your virtual solar survey by 31 August 2026.
Installing solar panels on your roof could save you up to £1,275 per year**, all while cutting your carbon footprint.
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See if solar is right for you and get a no-obligation quote from Utilita Home in minutes.
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*Saints UH Solar – Buy one get one free* This Promotion is open to new domestic solar customers aged 18 and over and is subject to availability. To enter this Promotion, simply enter code “SAINTS26” in the promo code box when signing up for your solar panels. A successful desktop survey must be completed in order to qualify for this Promotion.

This Promotion will run from 01:00pm on the 17 August 2026 (the “Opening Date”) to midnight on 31 August 2026 (the “Closing Date”) inclusive (the “Promotional Period”).

Terms and conditions apply (read here)
** This figure is based around a large electricity usage home in the UK (using roughly 5700 kWh per year). You can save up to £916 per year by installing a 16-panel system with our 5.32kWh battery storage. You can also earn up to a further £359 per year by exporting excess energy back to the grid at an electricity export rate of 12p per kWh. The calculations follow MCS standard procedure and assume a self-consumption rate of 54% for systems with battery storage and 22% for those without. The current unit rate is based on the energy price set by Ofgem at 26.103/kWh. Actual savings may vary depending on the specific equipment chosen and your precise annual energy consumption. Savings may also vary dependent on your property location and any obstacles which could cause your roof to be in shade, reducing the solar generation as a result.

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The Indonesian government has officially launched its 100 GW solar power plant program.
Speaking during a groundbreaking ceremony, President Prabowo Subianto said the government is serious about realizing the program and is aiming to develop 100 GW within three years.
According to a statement published by the government, the program will be carried out in phases with the initial phase targeting 17 GW of new capacity.
Under this first phase, 14 solar plants with a combined capacity of 5.2 GW are already in various stages of development. Reports from Reuters add that two of these plants are already in operation, with six in the construction phase and another six to be offered to investors.
Indonesia’s flagship solar program will target the deployment of ground-mounted, rooftop and floating solar power plants, as well as decentralized, smaller-scale solar systems, in order to replace diesel generation, electrify rural areas and villages and strengthen the country’s energy security and independence.
The program will also deploy battery energy storage systems (BESS) in efforts to support a more reliable power system. The official launch of the program coincided with the start of construction of a 305 MW solar project alongside a 1 GWh BESS in the port town of Gilimanuk, west Bali. The project belongs to Indonesia’s power utility PLN.
The 100 GW target surpasses Indonesia’s current electricity generation capacity, which stands at around 88 GW. According to the country’s Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Bahlil Lahadalia, it will require approximately $73 billion in investment and has the potential to create over 5.5 million jobs.
In a statement sent to pv magazine, Indonesian think tank Institute for Essential Services Reform (IESR) said that achieving the 100 GW target in less than four years is highly ambitious and will require innovative approaches to implementation.
“For the program to succeed, Indonesia needs a strong and consistent national implementation architecture backed by regulatory certainty,” IESR said. “The government must immediately establish clear program leadership with the authority to coordinate across ministries, PLN, local governments, industry, financial institutions, and businesses.”
IESR’s Chief Executive Officer, Fabby Tumiwa, added that success of the program should not be measured by how many projects break ground, but by how many gigawatts of solar can be built, connected to the grid, and reliably generate electricity before 2029.
“The biggest challenge now is to translate the President’s political commitment into an implementation engine capable of delivering tens of gigawatts of solar PV every year,” Tumiwa added.
IESR is recommending six priority measures to ensure the program achieves its 100 GW target, beginning with immediately finalzing a presidential regulation as the legal framework for the program, and aligning the country’s national energy general plan and PLN’s electricity supply business plan to accommodate the additional capacity.
It also recommends developing a clear annual project pipeline through 2029, accelerating procurement through competitive, transparent, and bankable tenders, ensuring power system readiness, developing a national supply chain and adopting a multi-track implementation so the program is not solely dependent on PLN projects.
Earlier this year, IESR released a report exploring how Indonesia can mobilize its 100 GW solar target as it warned against trying to adopt a one-size-fits all approach to electrifying the 80,000 villages targeted by the program.
Indonesia surpassed 1 GW of solar capacity in 2025, with total capacity reaching 1.49 GW by the end of the year.
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Our special edition for Intersolar South America 2026 is here!
Discover the latest insights into the Brazilian solar market – in Portuguese.
Entries open in seven categories: Modules, Inverters, BoS, BESS, Manufacturing, Sustainability, Projects.
April 01 – August 31, 2026
A two-day conference in Austin, Texas, bringing together leaders in US solar manufacturing, equipment specification, and factory execution.
Saudi Arabia is accelerating its clean energy transition—join the SunRise Arabia Clean Energy Conference 2026 in Riyadh to explore how solar PV and energy storage are powering its digital economy.
Thursday, August 27, 2026
5:30 am – 6:30 am CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid
pv magazine USA hosts its third multi-day virtual event on advancing U.S. solar and energy storage markets, covering financing, supply chains, and distributed energy’s role in grid resilience.
Thursday, October 7, 2026
11:00 am – 12:30 pm CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid

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China’s solar buildout hampers bird diversity  Canada’s National Observer
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Local news and What’s On from Wells. Your town in your pocket.
By Laura Linham 25th Aug 2026
Solar panels could be installed on part of the Bishop’s Palace in Wells under plans submitted to Somerset Council.
Two applications have been lodged for the installation of solar photovoltaic panels on the west-facing inner roof slope of the Jocelin Range at the Palace in Market Place.
The applications, references 2026/1548/FUL and 2026/1549/LBC, are currently awaiting decisions.
One application seeks planning permission for the work, while the second is for listed building consent.
The Bishop’s Palace has been home to the Bishops of Bath and Wells for around 800 years and forms part of one of the city’s best-known historic sites. The complex includes the medieval Palace buildings, chapel, ruined Great Hall, moat and gardens.
The proposed panels would be positioned on the inner roof slope of the Jocelin Range rather than on an outward-facing elevation.
No decision has yet been made on either application.
The applications can be followed through Somerset Council’s planning system using references 2026/1548/FUL and 2026/1549/LBC.
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⚡ Quick Read
In a significant move for the global renewable energy services market, Otovo, a provider of behind-the-meter energy solutions, has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Green Panel Solar Energy Systems for $11 million. This strategic acquisition represents the eighth and largest expansion effort by Otovo, aimed at bolstering its technical service capabilities across 15 European markets. The deal is part of a broader trend of consolidation in the solar sector, where companies are increasingly seeking to integrate field services, maintenance, and logistics to capture higher margins in the residential and commercial segments.
The transaction is structured through two separate share purchase agreements. First, Otovo will acquire Adma Holdings, which holds a 51% stake in Green Panel, with a long-stop date of October 15, 2026. The second phase involves the acquisition of the remaining shares, targeted for completion by March 15, 2027. Green Panel, based in Tel Aviv, specializes in field services, equipment replacement, and maintenance for solar PV, battery storage, and EV charging infrastructure. The company is projected to contribute $12.8 million in revenue and $2.9 million in adjusted EBIT to Otovo’s 2026 financial results. To finance this expansion, Otovo successfully raised $7.25 million through a private placement in July 2026.
For EPC contractors and solar developers, this acquisition highlights the growing importance of the ‘service-after-sale’ model. As the solar market matures, the ability to provide integrated maintenance, load management, and logistics—as Green Panel does via its solar command and control center—is becoming a key competitive differentiator. Developers should note that Otovo plans to merge these field operations with its existing inventory management systems, creating a more robust, tech-enabled service platform. This move suggests that future project viability may increasingly depend on long-term operational efficiency rather than just initial installation capacity.
The completion of the transaction remains subject to financial reviews and customary closing conditions. If the acquisition of the remaining shares fails to close, the Adma transaction will still proceed as a binding agreement. As the India renewable energy sector continues to scale, domestic developers and EPC firms may look toward similar consolidation strategies to streamline operations and enhance service delivery in the rapidly growing rooftop and C&I segments, mirroring global trends toward integrated energy service providers.
Aditya Pathre is the Founder of MVApulse and covers India’s renewable energy sector, including solar, wind, battery energy storage systems (BESS), green hydrogen, transmission infrastructure, renewable energy policy and competitive bidding. His reporting focuses on project developments, market trends, government policies and energy transition across India.
India’s Power Sector Intelligence Portal
MVApulse is an independent publication covering India’s renewable energy sector including solar, wind, BESS, transmission, green hydrogen, EPC and power markets.
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Starting in 2027, negative prices in the European electricity market could affect the compensation received by solar panel owners in Schweier.
KEYSTONE
People who feed solar power from their home systems into the grid may soon receive less money. Starting in 2027, the price will vary every quarter-hour and may even be negative. In that case, feeding power into the grid will cost money.
Stefan Michel
Generating electricity on your own roof and, if you don't need it yourself, selling it back to the public grid for a fee—for many years, that was the model that made installing solar panels on your own home financially attractive. But those days are over.
Instead of receiving money for the solar power that owners of small PV systems feed into the grid, they may soon have to pay for it. Starting in 2027, the feed-in tariff will no longer be set quarterly, but rather every quarter-hour. The price on the European spot market will be the determining factor, and that price can even be negative. In that case, it won’t be those who supply electricity who receive money, but those who consume it.
The dynamic feed-in tariff will take effect in Switzerland on January 1, 2027—unless the local electricity provider has agreed to a different compensation arrangement with the PV system owners. The Association of Swiss Electricity Companies (VSE) told blue News that it expects as few of its members as possible to offer such an agreement, as it would diminish the desired effect.
The reason for the new compensation model is the expansion of solar power production in Switzerland. The industry association Swissolar explains: “Within just a few years, photovoltaics have become a cornerstone of the electricity supply, and by 2026, solar power is expected to cover nearly 17 percent of Switzerland’s electricity demand.”
As a result, on sunny summer days around noon, more solar power is generated than can be used. Power grids cannot store energy and rely on the amount of electricity drawn from the grid matching the amount fed into it at all times. That is why the price of electricity on the European market then drops below zero. Anyone who needs electricity at that time can get paid for their energy consumption.
To prevent the Swiss grid from becoming overloaded with solar power at midday, the grid operator will be able to curtail PV systems starting in 2026—that is, to limit the amount of power they feed into the grid from an external source. If the system owner does not have a storage unit or any other way to consume the solar power themselves, the mini-power plant on the roof will temporarily cease operation. However, by law, the system may not restrict more than 3 percent of its annual production. The VSE recommends operating systems generally at only 70 percent of their maximum capacity.
The industry is working on various levels to balance electricity generation and consumption. For example, electric utility companies recommend running dishwashers, washing machines, and water heaters during the day; they also suggest that electric cars be plugged in during the day rather than overnight. Energy management systems automatically take care of this. Those without such a system may be able to use a timer to run their household appliances at the optimal time—or they’ll have to stay home to do so.
The dynamic feed-in tariff is the next step toward reducing peak feed-in during summer afternoons. “This creates incentives to feed electricity into the grid, store it, or consume it yourself when it makes the most sense for the power system,” explains the VSE in its statement on the legislative change.
The association points out that owners of small-scale systems can supply their solar power when demand is high and prices are correspondingly high. However, delayed feed-in requires an energy storage system, and these are expensive. For many years, the rule has been that solar power only pays off financially if owners consume a large portion of it themselves—without using a battery.
Modern storage systems automatically control power feed-in based on spot market prices. Nevertheless, a battery is another significant investment in addition to the PV system. For a long time, batteries were not considered cost-effective. Swissolar notes that they are now cost-effective in many cases, though this depends on their size, the solar system’s production profile, and the household’s consumption pattern.
In recent years, batteries for solar power generated by residential systems have become significantly cheaper. According to figures from Swissolar, the price of a storage unit capable of holding 15 kilowatt-hours of electricity fell by more than 30 percent between 2023 and 2025 alone. However, a home battery is still a major expense. While an average PV system for a single-family home costs between 25,000 and 30,000 francs, the appropriate storage system adds another 5,000 to 8,000 francs, as calculated by the Central Swiss electricity provider CKW in Central Switzerland .
Even before the change takes effect, solar expansion in Switzerland appears to be responding to it. In 2025, for the first time since 2017, fewer solar power systems were purchased than in the previous year, with the decline amounting to nearly 30 percent. By contrast, demand for energy storage systems has risen by 70 percent.
This could also be due to the “cannibalization effect” described by Swissolar on its website. This refers to the fact “that renewable energies reduce their own market value (…) by feeding power into the grid simultaneously.” In other words: The more parties feed solar power into the grid at the same time, the less each individual receives for it, and the less profitable it becomes for them. Swissolar has therefore long been calling for a dynamic feed-in tariff, which will become a reality in 2027.
Since its founding, the industry association has been lobbying for the expansion of solar energy use. It therefore has a vested interest in ensuring that owners of solar power systems can feed their surplus electricity into the grid on attractive terms. While dynamic rates make this more difficult, they do not make it impossible. Swissolar has calculated that, when looking at all systems in Switzerland, the total yield will be roughly the same.
VSE and Swissolar say it is not expected that plant owners will have to cover the difference starting in 2027. Electric utilities make payments quarterly at the average price for that period. This price will not be negative, even if negative prices are factored into the calculation. In addition, there is a minimum payment based on the system’s output.
In certain regions, electricity providers also pay a premium for the certificate of origin—a kind of bonus for electricity generated locally. On the other hand, those who continue to feed electricity into the grid mainly at midday tend to fare worse, Swissolar explained to blue News.
The new rates are beneficial not only for those who have a storage system, but also for those whose solar panels face east or west, allowing them to harness the morning or evening sun. During these hours, the grid needs the electricity more urgently, which is why prices are higher.
Given the minimal compensation, however, the question remains whether the new model will actually lead to a smoothing of solar power feed-in. The VSE does not expect a rapid effect. The minimum tariff reduces the incentive to refrain from feeding electricity into the grid when negative prices are in effect in Europe. Nevertheless, the Association of Electricity Suppliers anticipates that a new pattern will develop over time.
It’s hard to make big money with stored solar power. It would likely take years just to recoup the cost of the battery through the sale of electricity. Swissolar and VSE agree that the most profitable approach remains to consume the solar power generated on one’s own building.
Self-consumption remains the simplest way to protect the grid from excessive feed-in.
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Ireland’s solar sector is preparing for a significant test under the country’s sixth Renewable Electricity Support Scheme auction (RESS 6), which introduces new EU-driven criteria alongside the traditional focus on price.
“We expect solar to compete strongly in RESS 6,” Leanne Donovan, Policy Manager, Solar Ireland, told pv magazine, as Ireland’s solar industry prepares for the government-run sixth renewable energy auction (RESS 6) process.
RESS 6 is the first Irish auction to incorporate the European Union’s Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) rules around pricing. Since December 2025, Article 26 of the NZIA requires Member States to apply non-price criteria in renewable energy auctions to boost competitiveness while also promoting the integration of renewable resources into national grids.
Under Ireland’s interpretation of these rules, price accounts for 85% of the overall score, with the remainder allocated non-price criteria.
RESS 6 will have separate technology pots for solar and onshore wind which allows both a fairer chance to compete, said Donovan. In RESS 5, around 853 MW of solar was successful compared with 219 MW of onshore wind.
“Solar’s previous performance gives us confidence, but it is still too early to predict the outcome of RESS 6. This will depend on the capacity available within the solar pot, the number of qualifying projects, bid prices, financing conditions and whether the wider grid and regulatory framework will support project delivery. Ultimately, success should be judged not only by the capacity awarded, but by whether those projects can be financed, connected, and built,” Donovan said.
Solar has performed very well in previous auctions, securing the largest volume of successful capacity in each one to date. However, as with any new system, the market needs time to adjust and Donovan believes it is to early to predict the outcome of RESS 6. “Cost competitiveness will remain the dominant factor,” she said.
Solar capacity will remain at 11% despite a proposal to change it to 14%. Donovan said Solar Ireland welcomes this. “The 14% proposal was based on a high-output scenario intended to represent the technical capability of solar plants. However, we believed the auction should use an assumption that more closely reflects actual operating experience in Ireland. Using a realistic capacity factor provides a clearer and more credible basis for developers preparing their projects and avoids calculations being based on an expectation of annual output that may not be achieved in practice.”
Non-price criteria
Outside of the 85% price weighting, RESS 6 allocates 10% to energy system integration and 5% to system resilience.
The 10% energy system integration score will allocate up to 2.5% for projects incorporating a secondary technology and 7.5% for battery storage.
According to Donovan, the government needs to act fast to ensure Ireland’s regulatory policy lines up with the new RESS 6 rules.
“An auction incentive can only work if the wider electricity market and regulatory framework allow developers to deliver and operate those projects effectively.” Donovan added that the utility regulator’s decision to enable the sharing of Maximum Export Capacity is a good start, but it needs to be implemented quickly. Plus, it is currently limited to co-located projects where the different technologies are separately registered and operate independently, with a single legal entity behind the connection point.
Further reforms are needed to facilitate integrated hybrid units and energy sharing behind the connection point, including allowing batteries to store renewable electricity that would otherwise be wasted.
“Ireland needs arrangements that accommodate multiple legal entities behind one connection point, alongside clear rules covering charging, metering, settlement, dispatch, grid-code compliance and access to system services and other storage revenues. Until those reforms are in place, developers may be incentivized through RESS 6 to commit to capabilities that the wider system does not yet fully support,” said Donovan, warning that “Closing that gap will be essential if the new criteria are to translate into deliverable projects and genuine system benefits.”
The qualification window is open to interested parties until August 27, and final qualification decisions will be announced on Oct. 21.
Before qualification, applicants are required to submit a RESS 6 qualification declaration, a Bid Bond Submission Form and a Bid Bond Application Return Form. Following the final qualification decisions, applicants deemed qualified must submit a financial questionnaire to the government. Applicants are also obliged to submit a resilience declaration declaring their RESS 6 project complies with the minimum resilience requirements.
Full details can be found in EirGrid’s information pack here. The final RESS 6 auction results will be announced on 2 Dec., with awardees to be notified on 10 Dec. The auction submission window will open on 29 Oct. through to 5 Nov. and provisional results will be announced on 18 Nov.

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Our special edition for Intersolar South America 2026 is here!
Discover the latest insights into the Brazilian solar market – in Portuguese.
Entries open in seven categories: Modules, Inverters, BoS, BESS, Manufacturing, Sustainability, Projects.
April 01 – August 31, 2026
A two-day conference in Austin, Texas, bringing together leaders in US solar manufacturing, equipment specification, and factory execution.
Saudi Arabia is accelerating its clean energy transition—join the SunRise Arabia Clean Energy Conference 2026 in Riyadh to explore how solar PV and energy storage are powering its digital economy.
Thursday, August 27, 2026
5:30 am – 6:30 am CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid
pv magazine USA hosts its third multi-day virtual event on advancing U.S. solar and energy storage markets, covering financing, supply chains, and distributed energy’s role in grid resilience.
Thursday, October 7, 2026
11:00 am – 12:30 pm CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid

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DC-coupled solar-plus-storage projects can reduce the time needed for grid connection approval by “up to six months” compared with AC-coupled designs, according to panellists speaking at the Battery Asset Management Summit Australia 2026 in Sydney today (26 August).
Speaking on the panel “Hybrid Solar-Plus-Storage in Australia: Navigating Design, Operations, and Economic Optimisation” on day two of the event, Alistair Gibson, senior key account executive for utility BESS, hybrid and PV at Sungrow Australia, said the connection process for DC-coupled projects is simpler because the solar and battery components are assessed as a single integrated system rather than separately.
“The process for grid connection with DC-coupled projects is much simpler. What that really leads to is a reduction in the time of the Generator Performance Standards (GPS) or the connection process, by up to six months,” Gibson said.
Gibson noted that DC-coupling also reduces capital costs by requiring fewer inverters, since only a PV inverter is needed rather than separate PV and battery inverters.
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He adds that some suppliers, including Sungrow, now integrate DC-DC converters directly into battery containers, eliminating the need to purchase converters separately and further reducing balance-of-plant costs.
Toby Roberts, country director for developer and independent power producer (IPP) Elements Green in Australia, described the underlying distinction in simpler terms.
“DC basically are connected behind the meter before connecting into the grid,” he said, contrasting that with his own project, which uses four separate AC connection points across dual 275kV transmission lines.
Roberts added that the choice between AC and DC coupling is largely irreversible once made.
“It’s very much an early decision-making process in the design and development of a project. You can either do both, but it’s expensive, and it’s effectively a complete redo.”
Jack Han, strategic market expansion and transaction at Tesla, said the right architecture depends on how a developer intends to monetise the asset.
“It really depends on what you’re trying to do revenue-wise. AC-coupled might be a bit more flexible for you,” Han said, noting that DC-coupled projects typically use grid-following rather than grid-forming inverters, meaning developers may still face system strength charges depending on configuration.
Gibson added that some original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), including Sungrow, now offer grid-forming capability on DC-coupled systems as well, which he emphasised “changes the game in terms of making sure those system strength charges can be avoided even with a DC-coupled scenario.”
The panellists said battery storage warranty terms have lengthened to align more closely with solar asset lifespans. Han said that Tesla now offers a 25-year design life on its battery storage systems.
“I think we’ve essentially approached parity,” he said, though he cautions that developers need to assess whether individual components, and the companies backing them, are likely to still exist over that timeframe.
Gibson said the shift from 20-year to 25-year warranty terms has become a bankability requirement in the Australian market.
“It was initially 20 years that was the requirement for warranties and performance guarantees. Now it’s 25 years, and that’s becoming a bankability requirement as well,” he said.
Simon Franklin, country director for EDP Renewables Australia, said the extended warranty terms matter less for revenue modelling than for financing structure.
“This extension from say 20 years to 25 years is not necessarily hugely important for our financial model,” he said.
“But it can be important from a banking perspective if you can amortise that debt over a 25-year life. That helps you leverage ratios.”
On retrofitting battery storage systems to existing solar PV power plants, Evonne Bennett, chief operating officer at Aula Energy, believes land availability, connection agreements and the age of existing inverter technology all shape whether a project is a viable retrofit candidate.
“It really is a myriad of choices,” Bennett said.
“How quickly can you get this hybrid or retrofit to final investment decision (FID), bankability, and then it is actually built?” becomes a central question as existing power purchase agreements expire and merchant risk exposure grows.
Gibson added that older inverter technology can force developers back through the full grid connection approval process.
“If it’s an old technology, the question is when you actually go in to have a look from the Generator Performance Standards perspective, you actually may lead to potentially having to restart, redo the whole GPS process altogether,” he said.
Panellists highlighted that the growing demand from data centre operators is changing how hybrid projects are structured and sold.
Bennett said data centre load is emerging as a source of demand that could offset falling midday prices as more solar and battery storage capacity enters the market.
“There’s less arbitrage, but that’s also paired with the energy transition and wanting firm products to replace those baseload coals,” she said.
Franklin believes some counterparties are pushing hybrid projects toward fixed-output contracts that do not reflect how the underlying assets are best operated.
“A lot of the gentailers at the moment are really forcing projects to go to firm products. You’re kind of having to guarantee your output, which is really sort of concerning as a project owner because you expose yourself to a short position risk,” he said.
Roberts adds that educating offtakers on how to extract value from a hybrid asset, rather than forcing it into a flat-load structure, “has been probably one of the biggest challenges for us.”
Franklin also points to a practical constraint on hybrid contracting connection capacity that often prevents a project from generating and discharging simultaneously at full output.
Describing a New South Wales project with a 500MW connection shared between a 450MW battery and 450MW of solar, he said: “We clearly cannot generate both at the same time. I cannot fully sell both assets, or I risk a position where I cannot meet that settlement.”
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KERC Revises Solar Feed-In Tariffs For Distributed Solar Photovoltaic And SPV Projects In Karnataka  SolarQuarter
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The weekly average electricity price increased across most major European markets last week as TTF gas futures prices reached their highest level since January 2023, according to analysis by AleaSoft Energy Forecasting.
The Spanish consultancy recorded an increase in the weekly average electricity price across the British, Belgian, Dutch, French, German and Nordic markets last week, while the average price fell in the Italian, Spanish and Portuguese markets.
Weekly averages stood above €110 ($128.35)/MWh across all analyzed markets. The Italian market had the highest weekly average, of €168.31/MWh, followed by the British market, at €163.97/MWh. The Nordic market had the lowest average of the week, at €111.76/MWh.
AleaSoft attributes the upward trend in electricity prices last week to TTF gas futures prices reaching a weekly maximum settlement of €65.86/MWh, for the highest price recorded since Jan. 23, 2023.
The consultancy says European gas reserves exceeded 60% of their capacity in mid‑August, but remained below the average for that time of year over the last five years. 
“This level of reserves, together with the uncertainty over liquefied natural gas supply because of the tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, favored the upward trend of TTF gas futures during the week,” AleaSoft explained.
Solar energy production fell across France, Germany, Portugal and Spain last week but this was offset in Portugal and Spain due to an increase in wind energy production, AleaSoft adds.
The consultancy is expecting this week to bring a downturn in the weekly average electricity price across most markets, with solar energy production expected to rebound against the previous week in Germany and Italy.
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Our special edition for Intersolar South America 2026 is here!
Discover the latest insights into the Brazilian solar market – in Portuguese.
Entries open in seven categories: Modules, Inverters, BoS, BESS, Manufacturing, Sustainability, Projects.
April 01 – August 31, 2026
A two-day conference in Austin, Texas, bringing together leaders in US solar manufacturing, equipment specification, and factory execution.
Saudi Arabia is accelerating its clean energy transition—join the SunRise Arabia Clean Energy Conference 2026 in Riyadh to explore how solar PV and energy storage are powering its digital economy.
Thursday, August 27, 2026
5:30 am – 6:30 am CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid
pv magazine USA hosts its third multi-day virtual event on advancing U.S. solar and energy storage markets, covering financing, supply chains, and distributed energy’s role in grid resilience.
Thursday, October 7, 2026
11:00 am – 12:30 pm CEST, Berlin, Paris, Madrid

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Published on
Rompetrol Rafinare is continuing its investments aimed at increasing energy efficiency and reducing the carbon footprint of the Vega Ploiești refinery through the development of a 4.8 MW photovoltaic power plant, coupled with an energy storage system of approximately 9 MWh.
The new photovoltaic facility is expected to generate more than 6,200 MWh of renewable electricity annually, with the entire volume intended for the refinery’s own consumption. The integrated storage system will enable more flexible management of the electricity produced and help optimize its use according to the refinery’s consumption profile and operational requirements.
According to Rompetrol Rafinare, the project is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 3,800 tonnes of CO₂ annually, supporting the improvement of the energy and environmental performance of the Vega industrial platform.
The photovoltaic project is scheduled for completion by the end of 2028.
The investment is part of the ongoing modernization and efficiency program at the Vega refinery, which has contributed to higher yields and more efficient technological processes. Among the projects implemented is the modernization of the Vacuum Distillation Unit, which increased its yield from approximately 60% to almost 90%.
Vega is currently the only refinery in Romania producing bitumen and n-hexane. Its operational development continues to be supported by investments in modernization, technological upgrades and process optimization.
The new renewable energy project is expected to further strengthen the refinery’s energy efficiency while contributing to the gradual reduction of its environmental footprint.
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